Rebuilding Together Sandoval County continues to help those in need

Rebuilding Together Sandoval County has seen significant growth since 2020 with a 500% increase in the number of homes repaired.

The 501.c.3 nonprofit organization, which was founded in 1999, focuses on providing safe and healthy housing for vulnerable populations, including disabled people, low-income homeowners and veterans.

Rebuilding Together Sandoval County was originally called “Christmas in April.” It is dedicated to helping residents in Sandoval County who could not afford essential repairs to keep their homes safe and habitable. The original goal was to bring together volunteers once a year, in April, to do a project. From that modest start, RTSC has grown into an organization that provides year-round assistance. RTSC is now one of more than 100 affiliates of Rebuilding Together USA, the nation’s leading nonprofit organization working to preserve affordable homeownership and revitalize neighborhoods by providing rehabilitation services free of charge to those in need.

RTSC Board President Brad Wood gave a presentation at the April 24 Sandoval County Commission meeting to try to find more ways to continue to grow the organization and help even more people.

Wood said RTSC has grown from doing around $26,000 worth of improvements in 2020 to nearly $500,000 of improvements this year.

“What we do is expensive. We replaced roofs, we replaced furnaces. We do electrical repairs that are very expensive for these homes,” Wood said. “We're not just putting in you know, grab bars and handrails and things like that. Some of the work that we're doing is very expensive. And otherwise, these homeowners wouldn't be able to do any of this type of work on their own.”

RTSC offers a Critical Repair Program, which is guided by 25 health and safety priorities, a Disability Modifications Program that addresses homeowners' unique needs to age in place and ensure a safe and healthy environment, the [Re]Build Store in Bernalillo which offers home goods to homeowners who otherwise couldn't afford it, and a Safe Housing for Low-Income Veterans program which uses a proactive approach to maintain affordable housing and prevent homelessness for veterans.

“I am aghast at the number of veterans in Sandoval County who live in substandard housing and who live with very little income,” Wood said. “So we're going to try and help them.”

A recent pilot program partnership with RTSC and District 1 Commissioner Katherine Bruch helped repair two homes over the last two years with some of her discretionary funds, but the process remains challenging for low-income families.

“I really appreciated the opportunity I've had to work with your organization, and I want to continue to do that,” Bruch said. “It's difficult for me to say I can only do what I can do and knowing that I will only be able to do it for a couple of years. We do need to kind of start to figure out how we can continue this going forward.”

Wood presented a 2023 services recap that showed RTSC repaired 33 homes, helped 54 residents, completed 88 repairs and had 93 build event volunteers in 2023.

“The stats for 2023 are, I’m kind of embarrassed to say, but I’m really happy about the stats too because we repaired 33 homes and helped 54 residents in 2023,” Wood said. “The reason I say I’m a little embarrassed by that is there are over 15,000 eligible homeowners in Sandoval County and we helped 54 last year. We’re just scratching the surface.”

District 2 Commissioner Jay Block offered Wood a bit of advice.

“Don't be embarrassed about helping 54 people or families out at all. That is amazing what you've done,” Block said. “Don't be embarrassed. It looks like just incredible work, and thank you so much for all the work that you've done.”

RTSC is always looking for volunteers and donations. It will be repairing 30-plus homes over the next year and needs help to get the work done. To donate, click here, or, to volunteer, click here.