Portland/Seattle remodeler and builder Hammer And Hand and nonprofit home modification agency ReFit continue collaborative effort to provide accessible homes for clients in need. New wheelchair ramps and bathroom remodel make two Portland homes accessible and safe for homeowners. Saturday, July 14 ribbon-cutting ceremonies celebrate the pro bono retrofits.
Portland, Oregon – Hammer And Hand, the Portland/Seattle remodeling contractor, and ReFit, the home modification nonprofit, announced today two ribbon-cutting ceremonies to take place on Saturday, July 14. The ceremonies will celebrate completion of collaborative, pro bono retrofit projects that made the homes of two wheelchair-bound homeowners safe and accessible.
“The prospect of removing barriers to accessibility can be daunting without significant household financial resources,” said Laurey Maslyk, Executive Director of ReFit. “We’re grateful to partner with contractors like Hammer And Hand who volunteer their labor, expertise and materials to make retrofit projects like these a reality.”
ReFit and Hammer And Hand are both part of a larger movement toward barrier-free living environments and Universal Design (visit our Universal Design page for more info). Open floor plans, generous step-less entries, spacious hallways, no-lip showers, varied counter heights and roll-under sinks all remove barriers to the aging and the limitedly mobile and support independent, safe and happy home life. But barrier-free design also makes homes more convenient for all of us.
ReFit focuses on providing home modification services for physically and financially challenged homeowners. Given limited resources, the volunteer group focuses on the retrofit measures that will have the greatest impact on at-home accessibility. In the case of the two recently completed projects by Hammer And Hand, that meant new wheelchair ramps and a bathroom remodel.
“Most of us would never give those three little steps a second thought,” said Hammer And Hand lead carpenter Peter Bogart of the entry stairs that prevented wheelchair entry to a client’s home. “But now with the ramp Konstantine can come and go from his house on his own, without help.”
A detailed story and description of the retrofits for clients Konstantine and Shelley is featured in Hammer And Hand’s Field Notes blog at https://hammerandhand.com/field-notes/refit-and-hammer-hand-to-cut-ribbon-on-two-accessible-remodels/
ReFit will host the two ribbon-cutting ceremonies this Saturday, July 14:
10:30am, Shelley’s bathroom and ramp retrofit 9120 N Leonard Street, Portland
12:00pm, Konstantine ramp retrofit 2301 SE Caruthers #7, Portland
Both ceremonies are free and open to the public.
More about ReFit is at http://www.refitportland.org/.
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