Builders Care Rampathon Makes a Difference in Florida

Twenty-five First Coast, FL, residents have greater mobility and access to the world outside their homes, thanks to the efforts of Northeast Florida Builders Association Builders Care and NAHB Student Chapter volunteers who turned out on National Make A Difference Day, Oct. 23.

Among the volunteers were two teams of University of North Florida (UNF) students, members of the UNF NAHB Student Chapter.

 “It was a great experience,” said Damian Presiga, UNF student and president of the Construction Management Association. “We used the technical knowledge we’ve gained in class to help us build the ramps. In addition to giving us a chance to apply what we’ve learned, the effort was for a great cause.”

Presiga said about 15 students turned out for the rampathon. Presiga, who expects to graduate from the Construction Management program in August, is serving as an intern at North Florida Builders, a Woodside Company.

Make a Difference Day is an annual event on the fourth Saturday in October.  More than three million volunteers across the country participated in various projects. Participants registered their volunteer projects at the Make A Difference Day Web site.  The completion of the 25 ramps was the first phase of a Builders Care effort to complete 39 ramps before Super Bowl XXXIX comes to Jacksonville on Feb. 6.

Builders Care, a community outreach program of the Northeast Florida Builders Association, provides construction services to low-income, elderly and disabled people who otherwise could not afford these services. Builders Care has renovated more than 430 houses in just three years and provided more than $6 million worth of fair-market value construction to the Jacksonville area.

The Northeast Florida Builders Association provides education, research, legislative representation, media relations, promotions and programs for its 1,500-plus builder and associate members. The Association is celebrating 60 years of service to members and to the community through various charitable efforts.

Photos:
(1)
The University of North Florida Student Chapter of the Northeast Florida Builders Association participated in building 25 ramps on National Make a Difference Day. Pictured above are student chapter members Todd Hagamier (back) and Thomas Lockero and Luke Poynter (middle row, l-r). The Northside homeowner who cares for her elderly mother and Walter Poynter (Luke’s father) are on the front row.

(2)
UNF students, members of the NEFBA UNF Student Chapter, constructed a wheelchair access ramp for a Northside homeowner (center). Front row: Frederick “Buster” Frank (left) and Joe McClung; back row (l-r): Jeremy Bunnell, JoAnna Yates, Jose Bariquerro, Jacob Hartley and Damian Presiga. [ return to top ]