LEWISTON — An effort to help low-income homeowners stay warm in Lewiston and Auburn needs volunteers.
Organizers of Winterize LA plan to visit 100 homes in the Twin Cities beginning Nov. 5, putting up weatherstripping, helping to seal windows and providing other energy-saving services to low-income homeowners.
To do that, they’re going to need a lot of help, according to Mark McComas, acting community development director for the city of Lewiston. He estimates the effort needs about 120 volunteers.
“We need about 80 or 100 more, I think,” McComas said. “We’re not looking for big, experienced contractors. Even if you can’t swing a hammer, we have things for you to do. There are a lot of ways you can help.”
Auburn Mayor Dick Gleason and Lewiston Mayor Larry Gilbert were on hand Thursday morning at a news conference to kick off the volunteer drive.
“Basically, we just wanted to show the kinds of things that get done when we winterize,” McComas said. “It’s all pretty basic, simple stuff. We don’t want people to be intimidated by this work.”
This is the second year for the Winterize LA effort. Last year, a group of volunteers helped seal 70 homes in Lewiston and Auburn.
Volunteers included Bates College students and local contractors. They used supplies donated by local stores, including weather-stripping, sheets of window-sealing plastic, crack-sealing foam, caulk, insulating blankets for water heaters and energy-efficient light bulbs.
McComas said little has changed. High school students from Youth Build will be taking part as volunteers and groups that donated supplies last year, including Lowe’s Home Improvement, have become full blown partners this year.
“I think if we can just get some more volunteers, we’ll be in good shape,” he said.
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- Dave Zimmerman, operations director of Building Materials Exchange, left, demonstrates how to apply a reusable plastic covering on a window to help save on heating during a demonstration on James Street in Auburn on Thursday morning. Lewiston Mayor Larry Gilbert, center, and Auburn Mayor Richard Gleason look on.
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