By Pat Sorgenti

On Saturday, June 9th, 20 Bigelow employees donned tool belts and picked up paint brushes to work at a Habitat for Humanity home on the east side of Bridgeport. The day was gray and gloomy, but the workers were undaunted as they painted walls and doors, attached flashing to the roof, cut and affixed trim and many other miscellaneous jobs. In addition to learning new skills and enjoying the camaraderie that comes with working together outside the office setting, we had the opportunity to do a good work for our neighbors through the Habitat program. Each family must meet stringent requirements to be eligible for a Habitat house. They must meet maximum salary limitations, be able to pay the mortgage and donate 500 hours of their time working on other Habitat builds.

At the end of the work day, the house was cleared of tools and materials and refreshments were set up in preparation for the dedication ceremony. Those who attended got to see the true appreciation and thankfulness of the family receiving the home. They were given many house-warming gifts including a Bigelow tea chest presented by Cindi Bigelow.

Many of the volunteers were so gratified by the experience that they want to participate in another build. We will be looking forward to another opportunity in the fall. Many thanks go to: Cindi Bigelow, Marshall Adams, Alva Lindsay-Blair, Colleen Glover, Bob Hendrick, Don Janezic, Mike Kutniewski, Kim and Fred Langer, Melanie McElroy, Janned Serrano, Linda DiStefano, Dean Hearst, Sherri Luba, Mark Riccio, Dick Whalen, Nicole Whitney, Noreen Clough, Tina Dube, Faith Leach and Terri Saumell who gave their time and energy to work on this project.