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Road to Freedom (2022) Print
2022 AARP Community Challenge Grantee
Project Category
Housing
└ Innovative home maintenance, repair and support services
└ Innovative home maintenance, repair and support services
Detroit's aging residents often face unsafe homes and limited resources for repairs. Road to Freedom stepped in to fix porches, plumbing, doors and windows at no cost, while engaging volunteers to assist. The effort improved safety and comfort for older adults and built partnerships with local centers to ensure ongoing support. "I am so happy and excited about the work performed in my home," wrote one participant, underscoring the value of these repairs.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
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Dubois, WY
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023
Project Category: Innovative home maintenance, repair and support services
Description: In a remote Wyoming town, older adults faced losing independence as home upkeep and heating needs became overwhelming. Volunteers stepped in, cutting and delivering more than 30 loads of firewood, assisting with moves and repairing doors, cabinets and stair railings. They also winterized homes and provided yard work. These efforts kept residents safe and warm through harsh winters and continue monthly with plans for more repairs. One recipient, a 101-year-old veteran on hospice, received firewood, illustrating the project's critical role in meeting urgent needs.
Pinellas County, FL
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2021
Project Category: Innovative home maintenance, repair and support services
Description: The Florida Dream Center helps older adults in Pinellas County age in place, relying on federal grants and other funding sources to assist with home repairs and modifications. However, this funding is typically limited, meaning the nonprofit can only improve homes belonging to residents over the age of 62. To serve a larger subset of older adults, the Florida Dream Center created a program for residents between the ages of 50 to 61. Modifications include installing grab bars and handrails, replacing flooring, fixing holes in exterior walls, painting, rewiring exterior lights and mitigating rodents and other pests. By tapping a wide volunteer network to help make repairs, the Center has since expanded the services it offers to older homeowners.
Westford, MA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2018
Project Category: Innovative home maintenance, repair and support services
Description: Habitat for Humanity's Critical Home Repair helps lower-income older adults and veterans remain in their homes by helping with basic repairs and maintenance tasks. This project provided tools for the initiative. The tools allow Habitat to make accessibility upgrades to homes throughout Lowell -- such as adding wheelchair ramps -- as well as expand the number of homes the organization can repair and build.
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Livingston, MI
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2025
Project Category: HomeFit Modifications
Description: This project will consist of five home safety events. Topics include common home hazards and prevention strategies, crucial home repairs for safety and accessibility, and cost-effective maintenance solutions.
Hamtramck, MI
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2021
Project Category: Roadway/sidewalks/crosswalk improvement
Description: The Joe Louis Greenway is a planned recreational pathway between Hamtramck and Detroit intended to unify the region's neighborhoods, people and parks. Organizers with Eastern Michigan University hoped to help shape the design for an alleyway connecting to the greenway. They planned a pop-up activation of the alley, turning it into a pedestrian-friendly route and community gathering space. The demonstration featured temporary traffic-calming measures, as well as sidewalk bump outs meant to make crossing the street easier. Organizers surveyed visitors during the demonstration, using their feedback to inform permanent changes to the alley.
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