CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The Kanawha County Commission has approved a funding request involving a program aimed at providing low-income families with home repairs.
The Southern Appalachian Labor School requested $15,000 for materials related to 40 home repair projects in the Upper Kanawha Valley. Bolts Willis with the organization’s Board of Directors said the coronavirus pandemic hurt the organization’s funding efforts.
“We do all these homes, but we’re short buying materials,” he told commissioners last week.
Laborers will do exterior painting, wheelchair chair ramp maintenance and other projects outside of a home. They are not going into houses to complete inside projects because of the coronavirus.
“As long as it’s half an hour from East Bank Middle School — you can go toward Montgomery, you can go to Morris Creek, Cabin Creek, Witcher Creek,” Willis said. “As long as we can get there in half an hour, that’s how far as we’ll go. Some of them are in Charleston.”
“This is a wonderful program that you doing,” Commissioner Lance Wheeler said. “Being able to help these families the way you all have is absolutely tremendous, and I want to thank you all for your support.”
Willis told the commissioners that work will begin in July.