Home Repair Patsy

In a gentrifying area, Habitat is helping this longtime resident stay in the neighborhood she loves.

Patsy has lived in her home in Denver’s Park Hill neighborhood for 23 years. She raised her son and daughter in the one-story brick bungalow. She gathered family and friends, cuddled pets, made meals and made memories.

But over the years, she noticed changes inside her home, and around it. “My neighborhood has been gentrifying and I couldn’t keep up with repairs,” Patsy shares.

Thanks to Habitat Metro Denver’s Home Repair program, Patsy’s home received critical repairs that will allow her to remain in her home – and in her beloved neighborhood – for years to come. Habitat staff and volunteers rebuilt her fence, installed storm windows and doors, replaced cracked bricks, and painted her siding a blackberry color that Patsy selected and loves.

“The house was leaning where the bricks were cracked,” shares Patsy. “I’d been so worried about the house because I could only afford ‘Band-Aid’ repairs. I could never afford to have the work done on my own.”

Habitat’s Home Repair program engages Habitat staff and volunteers to make critical repairs that improve homeowners’ comfort, safety, and security. Projects often include energy-saving updates as well, such as new doors and windows. Habitat started work on Patsy’s home during the chilly winter months, and the changes had an immediate, positive impact.

“Before the Habitat volunteers did the work, the wind came in through my back door and the windows,” Patsy shares. “I was having a battle with the cold. It wasn’t warm in the house at all. After they finished, the house was warmer and there was a big decrease in my energy bill.”

The Habitat staff and volunteers who worked on Patsy’s home also got to know her. They took the time to engage her and her chocolate Labrador, Nyla, Patsy shares.

As part of her job as a social worker, Patsy often refers families to Habitat’s programs for help with housing. That’s how she learned about the Home Repair program. After she applied for help and qualified, she started to volunteer at the Habita ReStore in Aurora, cleaning furniture and preparing items for display. She plans to continue volunteering there and stay connected to the Habitat community.

“Now my house is like my neighbors’. Habitat supports people who need support. “I’m in a great place now and I can stay and maintain my home,” Patsy said. “If it weren’t for Habitat, I could never have had all this work done. I’ll be forever grateful.”