Volunteers help rebuild better Cleveland neighborhoods

CLEVELAND - Used to covering the daily news, or making a television station operate on a daily basis, didn't stop NewsChannel5 staffers from being able to demolish an unsafe garage, or power washing a home in preparation for a new paint job on Monday.

NewsChannel5's commitment to its program, Building Better Neighborhoods, brought its own volunteers to Cleveland's west side in a joint effort to make a difference.

The Nehemiah Mission on West 65th Street has been a force in the community since 2003 with its own program of volunteers, hailing from area church groups and also out-of-area churches and organizations.

The Coshocton Church of the Nazarene is one such group who gathered a group of teens and young adults on Smith Avenue on Monday. They will spend a week here working with the Nehemiah Mission's list of those in need.

Fifteen-year-old Katie Tupper had just returned from the roof of a house with a face full of roof dirt which was decades old.

"This is just a really cool experience to be able to come and help other people. I have so much in my house and my life and I just want to be able to help and enter God's will with other people," said Tupper.

Executive Director of Nehemiah Mission Jim Szakacs feels the satisfaction for both those who give and those who receive helps keep the sense of paying it forward alive in the community.

"We don't have to wait for the next tsunami, we don't have to wait for the next hurricane, or earthquake to hit somewhere to respond to the needs of other human beings," said Szakacs.