News

LIGHTNING PHOTOS: Bankers hammer away in Habitat blitz build

Charisse Zachary, a Bank of America teller, volunteered for the workday.

By Bill Moss, Published: October 6, 2014

EAST FLAT ROCK — Bankers' hours took on a new meaning on Saturday, Sept. 27, when managers, marketing executives and tellers traded their business attire for jeans and T-shirts and picked up hammers and saws for a Habitat for Humanity blitz build at Dodd Meadows.

Employees of Bank of America and sister financial companies US Trust and Merrill Lynch joined homeowners Kendra and Jorge Hernandez to assemble and erect the skeleton of the home in the Habitat subdivision.
The crew of about 20 volunteers went to work assembling walls and roof trusses and then hammering them into place for the four-bedroom 1,300-square-foot house.
"We're hoping to get all the walls braced, racked and plumbed," said AmeriCorps worker David Kosciusko, who supervised the work along with Habitat construction managers.
Although the crew of about 20 was smaller than some blitz-built turnouts, Kosciusko said he expected the volunteers would be able to accomplish in one day what a small Habitat crew would do in four to six days.
Mike Mercer, a Bank of America regional manager, said the local volunteer day was part of a nationwide BOA effort in September to partner with Habitat for Humanity on homebuilding projects. Mercer and Bob MacDonald of Merrill Lynch also presented a check for $10,000 to Habitat Executive Director Ron Laughter.
Named for longtime Habitat president Steve Dodd, Dodd Meadows will eventually have 82 homes, a community center, playground and walking trail, said Habitat Executive Director Ron Laughter.
"One of our new volunteers is retiring from the National Park Services, where his job was designing and constructing walking trails," Laughter said.