In carrying out a mission to develop
low-income housing for families that need it, West Side Ministries is
collaborating with area students to rehabilitate a home at 369 14th St.
West Side Ministries acquired the
property from the city in 2011 and it had sat vacant since.
“We weren’t ready to start work on it
yet, so we let it sit for a little while,” said Brittany Barber, head of the
housing development program at West Side Ministries. “We secured the property
and made it look nice on the outside.”
The development of the property marks the
19th project that the organization has had a hand in rehabilitating.
Construction is under way.
“We’ve been able to gut it in just a
couple weeks and we started putting up drywall and finishing hardwood and
installing kitchens and bathrooms,” Barber said.
For West Side Ministries, working with
local students on the rehabilitation of houses has become commonplace.
“All of the students that volunteer are
willing to help because they feel called to service,” Barber said. “We have a
couple groups from Buffalo State that come on their own will because they enjoy
giving back to the community.”
“It’s so worthwhile to not just do
everything for yourself,” said Aleah Sierle, a volunteer from Buffalo State
College. “When there’s a need, go out there and do something about it. You
don’t need the committees that talk about it, you just need a few people to
start doing something about it and people catch on.” By Mike Straw and Tom Gallagher
