Patty Solecki and Michaela Brown, two of the AmeriCorps serving with Rebuilding Together Twin Cities, recently partnered with a team from the Girl Scouts to make weatherization and energy efficiency improvements for Maria, a proud grandmother and homeowner in St. Paul.  These repairs were part of a larger service project focused on engaging youth in the Twin Cities community.  Volunteers caulked windows, installed weatherstripping on doors, and patched larger holes around the foundation, windows and doors.  In addition, the team learned how to change a furnace filter and install insulation on outlets located on exterior walls.  Many of the Girl Scout volunteers had never participated in a home repair project prior to volunteering with Rebuilding Together Twin Cities.  One of the girls said, "Around our house, it's usually my Dad and brother who do all this kind of stuff, so it was cool to do this today." 

In addition, Patty and Michaela partnered with youth volunteers from the Catholic Heart Workcamp, who spent four days working on a large-scale rehabilitation and accessibility modification project for Charles, a Vietnam-era veteran living in North Minneapolis.  The volunteers installed trim, caulked windows, replaced a windowpane, installed light fixtures, finished stucco on the exterior of the home, painted, installed tiling and paneling in the back porch, patched a hole in the ceiling, and made other general repairs.  Thank you to all of the youth volunteers who participated on these projects!