Category: Stories

As severe weather threatens Oklahoma today, the National Weather Service recommends checking on elderly neighbors who may not be aware. Make sure they know what to do and where to go in case of a weather emergency. Seniors should gather items including special foods, denture items, extra eyeglasses, hearing aid batteries, prescription and non-prescription medications that are regularly used, inhalers and other essential equipment to have on hand and ready to take with them if they need to leave home.

Ms. Margie W. loves taking care of people and she loves Oklahoma!  Margie grew up in Oklahoma and never plans on leaving.

“Oklahoma has been good to me,” she said. “Oklahoma City is good to me.  The people treat you right and you can always find work here.”

Ms. W had another taste of just how good Oklahoma is when a volunteer team from Rebuilding Together let her know they would be working on her home for Rebuilding Day.

“I’m so happy to live here,” said Margie. “God blessed me with this house and I am thankful for your help with it.”

Margie is delighted to have others help her.  She knows exactly how they feel wanting to serve their neighbors.  Ms. W says her vision is to help other people.

Throughout her life, Margie served children through her work in the school cafeteria.  She also worked for the State of Oklahoma as a server.  Margie attended school at Metro-Tech and became an assistant nurse.  The career choice placed her in nursing homes and in private homes serving the elderly.  In 1977, she became certified as a dietary-aid working at Baptist Hospital and other nursing homes.  Unfortunately, having back surgery put her career on hold, but this didn’t stop Margie from helping others.

Margie visits homeless shelters to volunteer, she sends cards to those who are sick, and she tries to find a friend in everyone she meets.  Her church activities also keep her busy and allow her to serve others.  She also enjoys sewing and will alter and hem clothes for other people.

Ms. W lost her husband ten years ago.  The couple had seven children, and today Margie has twenty-or-so grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.  She has lived in her home since 1976.

Rebuilding Together has done some work for Margie, including installing grab bars.

“Those grab bars make a 100% difference!” said Margie. “It’s wonderful.  I’m not afraid anymore.  I can bathe now and enjoy it!”

We hope to make that big of a difference throughout the rest of her home.  On Rebuilding Day a team will replace lights, repair floor tiles, repair termite damage, weatherstrip the home, and paint.

To help support our work on this home and many more like it in the OKC metro on Rebuilding Day, you can donate today and a generous donor will match your financial contribution dollar-for-dollar!!  Are you up to the challenge?!  Click here to DONATE NOW!

Ms. Irene has lived in her home for 61 years!   At eighty-eight years old, she is physically and financially unable to fix up her home that is literally falling down around her.

A Rebuilding Day team will complete home repairs and safety modifications for Ms. Irene on April 13.  These renovations include: repairing the front door, landscaping, installing a new shower hose, repairing the ceilings, patching holes and cracks in walls, repairing the master bedroom closet, painting in the dining room, and painting the trim outdoors.

To help support our work on this home and many more like it in the OKC metro on Rebuilding Day, you can donate today and a generous donor will match your financial contribution dollar-for-dollar!!  Are you up to the challenge?!  Click here to DONATE NOW!

Ms. Luvada N. is a very proud great-great-grandmother.  She met her husband in their hometown of Gutherie and the two fell madly in love.  The couple moved to Oklahoma City for his job at Tinker Air Force Base, and quickly started a family.  The family began with just two boys and one girl, but it kept expanding, and expanding, and expanding.

Today Ms. N has 13 grand-children, 14, great-grandchildren, and 6 great-great-grandchildren.  Fortunately for this great-great-grandmother, most of the kids live in Oklahoma City and she is able to visit with them frequently.   Occasionally one of her grandsons will stay with her to assist with larger needs.

Until recently, Luvada was very active in her community.  She previously worked in housekeeping, cleaning for several people in the neighborhood; she also served her church – Mt. Carmel Baptist – as secretary and sang in the church choir.   In addition, Ms. N was an elder-care volunteer for several years.  Luvada had to put most of her activities on hold in February when she became ill and was put in the hospital for five days.

Ms. N is very excited and thankful for Rebuilding Together.  She knows that without the help of volunteers, she would not be able to afford home repairs.  On Rebuilding Day, a volunteer team will replace light fixtures throughout the home, repair the ceilings, fix cabinet doors in the kitchen, and paint all interior rooms.

To help support our work on this home and many more like it in the OKC metro on Rebuilding Day, you can donate today and a generous donor will match your financial contribution dollar-for-dollar!!  Are you up to the challenge?!  Click here to DONATE NOW!

Ms. Marjorie P. says that Rebuilding Together has made a big difference in her life, one that she never saw coming.  Marjorie is a retired widow who has lived alone for more than 20 years.  She has lost almost everyone in her life, including her husband, and does not have any children.  After retirement, she moved back to Oklahoma City to be close to her brother.  He was the only family she had left, but unfortunately, he passed away soon after her move.

“It’s very difficult to make friends at my age,” said Ms. P.  “And all my childhood friends I grew up with in OKC are gone.”

Literally having no one else to turn to for necessary home repairs, Marjorie called Rebuilding Together.  Ms. P was reminded of Oklahoma’s hospitality when she was selected as a Rebuilding Day homeowner.

“The whole experience is mind-boggling,” she commented, “to see all these volunteers and all they are doing for me.”

Volunteer work on Ms. P’s home includes patching and repairing interior walls, cleaning the kitchen, painting all of the bedrooms, living room, dining room and hallway, and replacing the back door.

Marjorie grew up in Oklahoma with her grandmother.  Her mother passed away when she was 11 years old.  As a young adult, Ms. P left Oklahoma for the big city – New York City.  In NYC, she met and married her husband.  Marjorie worked in banking for almost 30 years in the credit department and in advertising/PR.

Ms. P enjoys playing the piano, completing cross-word puzzles and reading books, including her favorite, the Bible.  She is also active in church activities.

To help support our work on this home and many more like it in the OKC metro on Rebuilding Day, you can donate today and a generous donor will match your financial contribution dollar-for-dollar!!  Are you up to the challenge?!  Click here to DONATE NOW!

Ms. Christine B. has lived in her Oklahoma City home for the last ten years.  Rebuilding Together has previously replaced a few of her windows.  On Rebuilding Day a volunteer team will complete even more work for Ms. B.

On April 13, our team will work outside to improve the exterior appearance of Christine’s home, and also to weatherize the home and make it more energy efficient.  The team will patch holes in the plywood, add new trim to the garage door, caulk all doors and windows, paint the exterior, and provide landscaping.

To help support our work on this home and many more like it in the OKC metro on Rebuilding Day, you can donate today and a generous donor will match your financial contribution dollar-for-dollar!!  Are you up to the challenge?!  Click here to DONATE NOW!

Oklahoma City is feeling blue, and that is not a bad thing.  On April 1, Chesapeake Energy Corporation launched its annual spring/summer volunteer campaign, Operation Blue, during which Chesapeake employees receive four hours of company time to serve local nonprofit organizations.  Operation Blue is one of the many ways Chesapeake employees give back to the communities where the company operates.

“At Chesapeake, our success is a result of the strength of the areas where we do business,” said Teresa Rose, Chesapeake Senior Director of Community Relations.  “While Chesapeake employees regularly volunteer on their own time, Operation Blue enables teams to work together to address their communities’ greatest needs.  Giving back is a core value at Chesapeake, and Operation Blue reflects this commitment.”

The idea for Operation Blue originated in 2009 when employees pledged 20,000 volunteer hours to celebrate the company’s 20^th anniversary.  Chesapeake employees exceeded their goal, and in 2010 the campaign was formally introduced as Operation Blue. Operation Blue is part of Chesapeake’s larger philanthropic initiative, the H.E.L.P. (Helping Energize Local Progress) Initiative.  Since 2009, employees have volunteered approximately 127,000 hours serving more than 500 nonprofit organizations in more than 120 communities.

Exemplifying the importance of employee volunteerism, Chesapeake Acting Chief Executive Officer Steve Dixon worked alongside 25 employees at a Rebuilding Together OKC work site on Wednesday.  Rebuilding Together OKC counts on Operation Blue volunteers each year to help the organization fulfill its mission to make homes safe, warm and dry for low-income, senior citizens.  Last year, nearly 90 Chesapeake volunteers worked more than 360 hours at Rebuilding Together OKC sites.

“Without Chesapeake’s volunteer support, we could not repair as many homes or make as large of an impact on the lives of our elderly neighbors,” said Jennifer Thurman, Rebuilding Together OKC Executive Director.  “Operation Blue volunteers do everything from painting homes and installing safety equipment to cleaning and yard work. The work ethic and passion of Chesapeake employees enables us to do more with our limited resources and allows us to be a better organization for both our clients and our donors.”

After fifty-seven years of marriage, LD and Donna are as much in love today as they were when they first got married.

“I’ve stayed the same age,” LD joked. “She just keeps getting older, I don’t know what’s wrong with her.”

The two tease each other but it doesn’t take much time with them to see how dedicated they are to their family and one another.

A combination of health problems has left LD on almost full-time bed rest, but this doesn’t keep him from enjoying life. LD keeps his transmitter radio next to his bed along with his faithful chihuahua, Debbie. Just as his love for Donna has never changed, LD’s taste in music has not changed either.  His favorite: Classic country, including Hank Williams, George Jones, Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn.  Donna has a love for music as well.  Her father played in a band in Nebraska and she learned how to dance, along with her sisters, at a very young age.

Music isn’t the only interest that this couple has shared over the years; they were also avid gardeners. They grew all of their own fruit and vegetables in the backyard garden. Donna still loves working outside whenever she can and plants tomato plants along the side of the house every year.

Although Donna and LD enjoyed their life at home together, there would be weeks at a time where LD would be gone for his job on the road as a truck driver. LD, known as “Mountain Man” on the CV, loved the work he did and took Donna and some of their kids at different times on trips with him. He even gave Donna her own CV nickname: “Yankee Lady.”

Life has slowed down a lot for this married couple, but they are still active with a family of nine children, twenty-three grandchildren and now the addition of great-grandchildren. Donna and LD love staying in touch with their kids and seeing their family grow. Donna makes all of LD’s meals and they’ll watch TV together.  They enjoy sitting on the porch and watching birds in the warm weather.

They’re looking forward to springtime and the changes that are going to be made to their house by the Rebuilding Together team.

To help support our work on this home and many more like it in the OKC metro on Rebuilding Day, you can donate today and a generous donor will match your financial contribution dollar-for-dollar!!  Are you up to the challenge?!  Click here to DONATE NOW!

Myra P loves being a mother, grandmother, and now great-grandmother.  During her 40 years of marriage to her late husband, the couple had five children.  Myra now has too many grandchildren and great-grandchildren to count!   And this woman doesn’t let her age keep her from enjoying time with her family.

Most of her kids live nearby.  Myra will visit them when she’s out running errands.  And they also come to see her occasionally.  Myra gets to play the role of grandma and babysitter.  “It’s just so much fun,” Myra said. “They have so much energy. They’re always on the move.”

During holidays and family get-togethers, Myra enjoys having the family over to her house to celebrate. Their family traditions include cooking a big meal together. Myra likes helping out her family in any way she can.

In addition to being grandma, Myra calls herself an independent woman.  With no kids living at home, she is free to do what she wants when she wants, and she is enjoying every minute of it. While she’s retired now, Myra always worked different jobs, including serving at a restaurant and as a surgical scrub tech.

Myra has now lived in her current home since 1972. She is excited to see what Rebuilding Together has in store for her home.

“I’m breathless, I’m speechless because of all the things they’re going to do,” Myra said. “I had the faith the size of a mustard seed. And now you all are here. If I can’t find the words, trust me–I’m grateful. I’m blessed.” 

A Rebuilding Together volunteer team is working on Ms. P’s home, not only on Rebuilding Day, but for several weeks after Rebuilding Day as well.  They will replace 12 windows throughout her home, remove sliding glass doors to the entry way and replace those with French doors, remove paneling in the living room and re-drywall, repair siding and door frames, and add hand rails to entry ways.

To help support our work on this home and many more like it in the OKC metro on Rebuilding Day, you can donate today and a generous donor will match your financial contribution dollar-for-dollar!!  Are you up to the challenge?!  Click here to DONATE NOW!

Charles and Marilyn Owens aren’t worried about a thing. Not because life hasn’t thrown them challenges, but because the way they see: if they wake up another day, that’s a blessing they’ve been given.

And after forty-six years of marriage, Charles and Marilyn have learned what it means to appreciate what they have been given. In that time, they had three children and now have one grandchild.

The two met in high school through her sister that was dating Charles’ cousin at the time. Not long after they graduated, they were married. They have moved around Oklahoma City in their years of marriage but have lived in their current home since 1973.

Both Charles and Marilyn have worked different jobs throughout their careers anywhere from restaurants as a short-order cook to a candy factory. But now, the biggest job they have is babysitting their grandchild who keeps them busy while his dad is at work.

“My father is thirty years older than me. I’m around thirty years older than my son. And now, my son is thirty years older than his son,” Charles said. “It’s amazing to have these different generations.”

Charles was born in Monroe, Louisiana and likes to travel back home to visit his family, including his father, who is in his nineties.

Marilyn, originally from OKC, loves to support the Thunder. She hasn’t been to a game just yet, but she jokes that if someone were to get her the ticket, she’d make it there.

In 2006, Marilyn was diagnosed with congested heart failure, but she’s not letting that keep her from living her life. “I don’t worry,” Marilyn said. “Jesus got me.” She enjoys playing cards with her family and fishing with Charles.

To help support our work on this home and many more like it in the OKC metro on Rebuilding Day, you can donate today and a generous donor will match your financial contribution dollar-for-dollar!!  Are you up to the challenge?!  Click here to DONATE NOW!