Fresh Coat Painters Partners with Rotary, Other Local Businesses to Help Renovate Katie’s Wing at Place of Hope
St. Cloud, MN (PRWEB) December 02, 2016 -- When families, especially women and children, need a warm place to sleep or help to get back on their feet, they turn to Place of Hope Ministries. And now, thanks in part to Fresh Coat Painters of Central Minnesota and other community partners, the new women and children’s wing – Katie’s Wing – at Place of Hope is scheduled to open at December 4.
Through Fresh Coat’s national Paint it Forward® project, Fresh Coat Painters of Central Minnesota provided the expertise and professional labor for painting a portion of the Katie’s Wing renovation. Ceiling paint and supplies were donated by Fresh Coat Painter’s national paint partner, Sherwin-Williams®. Fresh Coat Painters of Central Minnesota is locally owned and operated by Eric Heipel.
“I heard about the work at Place of Hope through my Rotary Club. They were pulling together resources to renovate Katie’s Wing and, as a painter, there was clearly an opportunity for Fresh Coat to help. Place of Hope is a non-profit, Christian-based organization and that’s particularly near and dear to me. I’m excited that our Paint it Forward efforts, with the help of the Rotary Club and Miller Architects & Builders, will help make Place of Hope an even better place for the people they serve,” Heipel said.
Place of Hope works with those experiencing poverty, homelessness, addiction, human trafficking and/or life crisis, but Rev. Carol Smith – who runs Place of Hope with her husband Rev. Geary Smith – said serving women and children is a special mission for them and that the renovation will help serve more people.
“Working with moms with children and single women who need a hand up has become such a deep part of what we do. Our mission of bringing hope, along with our vision of restoration here at Place of Hope, can be tangibly touched in Katie’s Wing,” Carol Smith said. “There is nothing like a fresh coat of paint to bring a freshness to a home! The bright colors and fresh coat of paint will make it a very welcoming, cheery place to live and regain safety, security and hope in their lives.”
“We are based on the Scripture found in Isaiah 58: ‘the true fast of the Lord is to feed the hungry, clothe the naked and shelter those in need … and those from among you will rebuild the ancient ruins, and repair of the breach and be the restorer of streets in which to dwell,’” she added.
Fresh Coat Painters of Central Minnesota partnered with the St. Cloud Rotary Club and Miller Architects & Builders and to help make Katie’s Wing a welcoming and friendly place. Fresh Coat donated man hours and paint to give the place a fresh, new look; Miller Architects & Builders provided carpentry labor to replace doors, remove ceilings, build new walls and replace a countertop; and the St. Cloud Rotary Club sent 34 Rotarian volunteers to sand, paint and varnish. The Rotary Foundation is also funding the cost of remodeling the plumbing in three bathrooms on the second floor.
Jerry McCarter, president of the St. Cloud Rotary Club, said volunteering for the Place of Hope renovations falls in line with their 2016 goals and is something they were happy to do.
“As part of this year's planning process, our club identified homelessness in Central Minnesota as a local problem needing attention. We brought in speakers to educate our members about the issues surrounding the problem. We participated with a group of service providers dealing with homelessness to learn how we could provide support. Ultimately, we identified eight target projects. We selected three of those areas, two small projects and one major initiative for further review and action. The remodel of the second floor of the Place of Hope was selected as a small project to be addressed immediately,” McCarter said. “Our club has a history of taking on impactful community projects. Last year our members volunteered more than 4,000 hours of community building activities and, this year, our club decided to involve our members is areas which will impact those in the greatest need in our community.”
On top of the Fresh Coat and Rotary volunteer work, Joe Seifert, President of Miller Architects and Builders and fellow Rotary member, sent along his team to help too.
“Miller Architects & Builders tries to promote volunteerism throughout our company and we have had employee volunteer teams working on projects for the Place of Hope and Pastor Carol in the past. I was very happy to be asked to help on this project by the St. Cloud Rotary Club, which Eric and I belong to, and am thrilled that our work will help them serve more families,” Seifert said.
Place of Hope Ministries also received support from the family of the late Katie Stigman, including her parents Howard & Annie Egeland and sisters Kristen (Tim)Demery and Kendra(Kyle) Roehl; St. Cloud Federal Credit Union; Phil Sturlaughson and others from Atonement Lutheran.
“We are so grateful for the generosity and kindness of every single person and business who has helped us complete Katie’s Wing, which will be a safe place to begin to rebuild, repair and restore lives,” Carol Smith said. “Also, the word paint actually has some spiritual meaning … it some form is means to anoint, which signified a new start or a dedication to something. So, painting is like covering the old and bringing new – a new start for those who have been unsettled and perhaps scared and having no idea what tomorrow might bring.”
Paint It Forward was inspired by Eric Ascencio, previous co-owner of a Fresh Coat Painters franchise in Houston, Texas. Eric had made it his mission to be an inspiration for other cancer patients and to give back to those in his community, leaving behind a legacy when he lost his battle with the disease.
“The national Fresh Coat Painters Paint it Forward program is especially helpful for newer franchises because it gives me an opportunity to give back to the community in a more meaningful way than I could do on my own. It was exciting to be able to tell Place of Hope that we could help thanks to Paint it Forward,” Heipel said.
Heipel opened Fresh Coat Painters of Central Minnesota in June 2013 after a career in business and operations management with a Christian camp and conference center. Heipel co-owns the company with his wife, Annie, with the support of their four children. Fresh Coat Painters of Central Minnesota serves the Greater St. Cloud Metro, Monticello, and Northwest Minneapolis suburbs including Maple Grove, Rogers and Elk River. For additional information, contact Heipel at 320-281-1232, EHeipel(at)FreshCoatPainters(dot)com or visit http://www.FreshCoatStCloud.com.
Fresh Coat Painters is a leading residential and commercial painting company with a focus on customer service and professionalism. The company offers professional residential and commercial painting services including interior and exterior painting, wood staining and refinishing, wallpaper removal and many other services for nearly every protective coating application. They use quality, environmentally safe materials and offer a live 24/7 customer service center, online scheduling and free detailed quotes. All Fresh Coat employees are insured, trained and background checked.
About Fresh Coat Painters
With more than 120 locations nationwide, Fresh Coat Painters brings quality customer service, top-notch painting products, professionalism and affordable pricing to the residential and commercial painting industry. They use quality, environmentally safe materials and offer a 24/7 customer service center, online scheduling, in-home color design consultations, and detailed quotes. All painters are bonded and insured employees. For more information, visit http://www.FreshCoatPainters.com, call 1-855-FRESH-COAT or visit us on Facebook.
The company was founded in 2004 as part of Strategic Franchising Systems. In the last year, Fresh Coat has been included in the Bond’s Top 100 and named to Entrepreneur Magazine’s Franchise 500 list. Fresh Coat is also part of the International Franchise Association, the Small Business Association’s Franchise Registry, VetFran and Minority Fran.
Carolyn Liedtke, Fresh Coat Painters, http://www.FreshCoatPainters.com, +1 (513) 489-2026, [email protected]
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