Habitat for Humanity volunteers rebuild ramp destroyed during accident in Struthers
By Kelcey NorrisMahoning Matters
Habitat for Humanity volunteers rebuild ramp in Struthers
David Redig
Habitat for Humanity of Mahoning Valley
After a ramp was destroyed in a car accident, volunteers with the Habitat for Humanity of Mahoning Valley stepped up to rebuild it and make the home accessible again.
Susan Gadzia’s home on Como Street in Struthers became the scene of an accident at the end of June.
Volunteers with Habit for Humanity have replaced the ramp in Gadzia’s front yard.
A car crashed in her front yard while Gadzia was sitting inside, but luckily she wasn’t hurt in the crash.
Here’s a before picture of the ramp after it was hit by the car:
Susan Gadzia’s home on Como Street in Struthers became the scene of an accident at the end of June. Habitat for Humanity of Mahoning Valley
Because of the damage to the ramp, the home was inaccessible for anyone with a handicap and needed to be rebuilt.
Struthers ReStore Manager, Meghan Williams, heard about Gadzia’s story and called Habitat executive director David Redig last week.
“I knew we had to do something, and thankfully we have some loyal volunteers who are skilled at building ramps,” Redig said.
Volunteer Tony Nasrallah led the project.
“This was an immediate need to make sure Susan can get out of her home,” said Redig. They’re finishing up railings and leasing the ramp to the driveway but it should be ready for Gadzia to use soon.
Here’s the volunteers’ progress:
Habitat for Humanity of Mahoning Valley volunteers rebuild Susan Gadzia’s ramp on front porch Habitat for Humanity of Mahoning Valley
According to Redig, an official home repair program is coming to the Valley thanks to delegated, incoming funding from the state’s ARPA funds. There’s no program set up for the Valley right now.
“Once this state funding is released, my goal is to try and bring as much of it here to the Valley as I can,” said Redig. “We are looking at ways to make that happen, which could lead to an ongoing ramp program in the future.”
