Iowa State Bank Completes Critical Home Repairs for Three Loyal Customers of Their SW 9th Branch
Rebuilding Together Greater Des Moines and Iowa State Bank volunteers participated in their third-annual corporate workday. The volunteers completed critical home repairs to help three homeowners on the south-west side of Des Moines who are also longtime customers of Iowa State Bank’s branch on SW 9th and Army Post Rd.
The day was kicked off with a light breakfast snack, orange juice and chilled bottled water in the Iowa State Bank parking lot located on SW 9th Street. It was a warm day, but that didn’t stop the volunteers from showing up to put in some hard work. They quickly went to work breaking up into two groups and heading out to the first two homes located just blocks apart and within walking distance of the bank.
At Barbara Wheeler’s home on Geil Ave., Iowa State Bank volunteers replaced the storm door, cleaned out the gutters, replaced a light switch, and put plastic on the windows. Barbara has lived in her home on Geil Ave. for nearly 25 years. “I love my neighborhood, it’s nice and quiet,” Barbara said. The Colorado native moved to Des Moines with her husband and settled in the HUD home. In 2007, Barbara retired from Hy-Vee to take care of her sick husband who passed away in April of 2015 to cancer. Barbara now lives alone but enjoys the company of her 15-year-old grandson, spending time at the senior center, and taking care of her dog named Snickers.
Around the corner on Bundy St. at Bonnie Young’s home, volunteers were replacing deck boards and railings, painting the front porch and ceiling, and installing weather stripping. Bonnie has lived in her home for nearly 30 years. She currently lives alone with several health issues. “I am so grateful to have been selected for the Iowa State Bank workday. When I told Lora from the bank about all the problems I was having, she sent me an application to Rebuilding Together. It’s a good feeling to know how much they care about me as a person and a customer.” Bonnie said about being selected for home repairs.
After working on both homes all morning, the volunteers stopped for a boxed lunch in the parking lot of Iowa State Bank on SW 9th Street. Several of the bank employees have participated in the annual workday in past years, but there were many new faces too. Workdays like this are a great opportunity for employees to meet other employees that work at other branches. There were also several employee volunteers who brought their significant other to help out.
Lunch wrapped up at 1:00 pm and the afternoon volunteers started to arrive to work the second half of the day. The volunteers once again broke up into two teams to tackle the items left from the morning and to begin the work at the third home.
The third house was located just a bit further down on Bundy St. Again, another loyal customer of their neighborhood Iowa State Bank, Lola Armstrong was at home waiting in delight for the volunteers to show up and start removing debris and cleaning up the yard. Through the overgrown weeds and grass, poison ivy, and wasps, the Iowa State Bank volunteers made no hesitation to clear out Lola’s yard. “I don’t go anywhere, but sit at home,” Lola said. “It’s been a long time since I would go outside and enjoy my yard. Maybe now, I’ll be able to do that.” Lola grew up on the south side of Des Moines. She has lived in her home for nearly 49 years. Her deceased husband and father were both Veterans. She had one daughter who passed away leaving her 9 grandchildren. With most of them being grown her youngest grandson recently came to stay while he looks for work. “It’s nice to have him around. Sometimes he’ll surprise me and cook dinner for us.”
If you’re interested in learning more about having a Corporate Give Back Day experience through Rebuilding Together Greater Des Moines, contact us.
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