WEST PULLMAN — The Chicago Fire put away their soccer balls and took out hammers and hard hats Wednesday to help Habitat for Humanity Chicago with an ongoing home-building project.
The team joined employees of the Valspar paint company who donated 240 gallons of paint for the four homes.
“Valspar is committed to doing its part to transform neighborhoods through our partnership with the Chicago Fire and Habitat for Humanity,” said Aaron Erter, Valspar senior vice president of consumer paint. “Together, we’re making a difference to those in need.”
Residents of West Pullman worked with the two groups. Volunteers were broken into groups with team leaders. They painted, built fences, put up siding and cleaned up the block.
About 100 people worked with residents.
Habitat for Humanity Chicago has four finished homes in the block of 119th and South Union Avenue. Volunteers are finishing up four more so families can move in by June. The goal is to build 16.
“I’m always up for giving back to the community,” said Fire player Eric Gehrig, whose group helped put in flooring.
Gehrig said he likes the idea of neighbors helping future neighbors, along with volunteers from outside the community.
“I think it’s cool,” the former Loyola University soccer star said. “I think at the end of the day, we’re all a part of the greater good. When I think about stuff like this happening, I think of hope, I think of positivity, and I think of new beginnings.”
The Fire’s chief operating officer, Atul Khosla, said the entire team came out to help, along with coaches and administrative staff.
“A lot of us are doing things we’ve never done before, but I think what has been fantastic is the way the neighborhood here has come together,” Khosla said.
Khosla, a Bucktown resident, learned how to put up a fence.
“For me, personally, I think it’s incredible to go into neighborhoods I may not have gone to before,” he said. “It’s great to see how the neighbors care so much about wanting to build up their neighborhood, this block, and I’m glad we can play a small part in their life.”
Natasha Nicholes moved into the first home of the Habitat project back in December 2014. She said she and her husband Shomari still are working on a couple of projects, like finishing the basement and adding a room. And she’s eager to see more neighbors on the block so her kids can have playmates and she can get a hand with a community garden she's started.
The families are not only working on their homes, but they are helping future neighbors build theirs.
“That’s how it should be, and that’s the way my parents, grandparents and their parents grew up — where everybody in the neighborhood knew everybody else,” Nicholes said. “Everybody focuses on Chicago as a violent city, and I think if we focus more on building the neighborhoods, we would be able to limit that violence a lot more.”
Jennifer Parks, executive director of Habitat for Humanity Chicago, said the work the volunteers do is important because it supports the community.
“It’s really all about the neighborhood, and the neighborhood is what matters,” she said. “We’re helping bring new homeowners to the community, but we’re also working with existing residents and helping to build stronger neighborhoods.”
Parks said the next neighborhood where Habitat for Humanity will build homes will be announced in late summer or early fall.
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