A little teamwork and inspiration can go a long way. That's what the Capital Region (Albany, NY) Remodelers Council discovered last Christmas when they banded together to make life a little better for some needy Albany area residents.

It all started a few days after Thanksgiving when a local news program featured a story on the plight of an Albany church in need of building materials and volunteer labor. The church had been informed it could not continue to serve as a soup kitchen until its dining areas had walls and floors that were safe for public use.

As luck would have it, watching that night were Remodelers Council Chairman Ric Kaplowitz and member Dett Otterbeck. Both believed that the Remodelers Council and other association members could help, and they phoned each other to start the ball rolling. Otterbeck says, "This project struck us because the church is in our association region and our members are experienced professionals who could easily tackle this problem." The challenge was to complete the project by Christmas . . .less than a month away.

Otterbeck, a newly elected member of the Albany Area Builders Association Board of Directors, took the lead. He started by calling the AABA office for tips on organizing a volunteer project of this scope. Then, Otterbeck and two other members met with the pastor of the church to review the project in detail and prepare labor and materials lists. After this meeting, Otterbeck faxed his lists and a plea for help to every Remodelers Council member and then reported on the project at the next AABA board meeting (his first as director.) By the time the meeting had adjourned, all the necessary building materials had been donated by other board members or their companies.

The next step was to line up enough volunteers to do the work. A week before starting the job, Otterbeck called every council member and asked them to bring along a volunteer to help. They did not disappoint, and the project was finished in only two days. A local supermarket chain even contributed food to feed the hungry volunteers. And the TV station that had aired the original story returned to film a follow-up segment that showed what can happen when a few people care enough to take action.

"Our Remodelers Council is a model for how much people can accomplish when they are committed and work together toward a common goal," says Kimberly Seymour, AABA executive vice president.

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