Welcome home: Industry volunteers refurbish housing for veterans

TUCSON – Volunteers from the home décor industry braved the intense heat of the Arizona desert to improve the lives of homeless veterans last week. It was part of ART‘s service project that dovetailed with its annual conference.

Esperanza has been assisting veterans in Tucson for the past 37 years by offering short-term, transitional and permanent housing, as well as supportive services. “Our mission is to honor those who served by helping them rebuild their lives with dignity and purpose,” the organization said on its website.

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Last Thursday afternoon, a busload of ART conference attendees arrived at the 14-acre facility and got to work refurbishing 12 family units and four multi-person units using items donated by the home furnishings industry, including mattresses, dining tables, end tables, consoles, pictures, mirrors, rugs, lamps and bedding. Twenty-two companies donated a total of 1,671 items. Additionally, lighting companies donated hundreds of fans and hardwire replacement fixtures to upgrade units throughout Esperanza‘s campus, according to ART Executive Director Sharon Davis. Those fixtures will be installed by licensed electricians.

“Esperanza was our 11th ART community service project,” said Davis. “Personally, it reinforced my belief that creativity can inspire hope and connection, and it showed how ART builds community from the heart.”