There will be many more photos soon, but here is just a recap of the very very cold MLK Jr. Day of Service.  We want to send a special shout out to Lou Jean for filling our bellies with pans of empanadas, veggie bread, sub sammiches, and the Obama chili baked into the cornbread (to make it portable).  Also, to all the folks that brought cocoa and to team Mega-Yax for the behind-the-scenes baking of RK treats, oatmeal cookies, hazelnut booze bundt and pumpkin spice drops.

We have an even bigger thanks to bestow on the new and old folks we met from PUSH and the Buffalo community and ReUse regulars–and Ellen Berrey’s class, for a record quickness with the board ups–THANK YOU!  We secured 6 houses and were finished up by 1:30pm (much to the disappointment of the late-comers)  Do not despair, there will be more opps.  I think the piles and piles of snow really make the colorful murals more vivid.  I hope the students and the neighborhood will be proud. I believe everyone had a great time even though our toes and butt cheeks were mostly frozen all day.  I saw Harrison stuff some of those hand warmers into his boots; I’m not allowed to tell you where he shoved the oatmeal.

Marc Odien of wnymedia came out and made a documentary clip about volunteerism and we also got a mention from Mark Sommer with the Buffalo News who highlighted all the different events hosted in Buffalo.

Some of you already know we are participating in WNY AMERICORPS’ ‘A DAY ON, NOT A DAY OFF’ for community service, January 19, 2009.

For our part, Buffalo ReUse and PUSH Buffalo are collaborating to board up 6 vacant houses on Buffalo’s west side!

Last January over 30 local schools painted 4×8 panels with images of peace to cover the windows/doors of blighted vacant houses.  Now we have the opportunity to secure some properties that PUSH Buffalo is going to rehab for low income families while the funding and work is done over the next few years.

Join us in making the city a little brighter and a little safer! If you can use a hammer or a measuring tape–great–if you can’t–we’ll teach you!

The board up team will assemble at the first house, 397 Massachusetts Ave at 9am on Monday; the other properties are nearby.  We believe we’ll be finished by 3:30pm.  There is no age minimum or maximum–assist in any way you are able.
We’ll need folks to help clear debris around the houses using rakes, shovels and trash bags.  We’ll need folks to measure window and door openings, remove some of the gray panels and trim down the painted panels, then hammer on the murals.
We’ll need an MC (Master of Cocoa) or two to man the cocoa kettle and distribute mugs of warmth and marshmallows.

Please dress warm and in layers!  If you have the following, please bring them for yourselves, work gloves, safety goggles, a hat/hardhat, measuring tape, hammer and a smile.  We will have a small supply of pry bars, hammers, nails, measuring tapes, hard hats, ladders, rakes and shovels, but if you have extra, please bring them.  We have access to 2 circular saws, but one more would be great.  If someone has another generator and a pickup truck, that would also be really helpful for transporting the panels to the houses.
Other ways to assist: baked goods, sammiches, packets of cocoa, cider or other hot liquids or bottled water, sleeves of cups or mugs . . . and MARSHMALLOWS!
Photogs are always welcome!!!
Trust me, it will be fun, action-packed day and you will meet lots of great folks.  If you doubt me, then by all means bring us some great folks–like your mamala, your bff or that pirate you saw on CraigsList!
Read the rest of this entry »

Here’s an entry from Nicole Bzibziak about volunteering with us in boarding up the vacant house that Karen Chiodo and Rachel Lyons classes from BAVPA adopted during the Neighborhood Peace Mural Project. This was from Saturday, April 12th, but we got so caught up with our subsequent projects, we hadn’t had a chance to document it for the blog–Thanks Nicole!
(click on the photos for more images)

I was excited to wake up the day of the board-up on Woodlawn Ave. It was my first experience as a volunteer with Buffalo ReUse and I had heard so many positive things from others; I knew it was going to be a great day. My fellow classmates joined in as part of MBA Jesuit Care Day to help. At first, I felt a little out of my element with a crow bar in-hand instead of my usual notebook and financial calculator for class but I was able to dive right into tearing off the drab gray boards that were covering the house. A group of us chose a window and began the process of making this vacant house look like a piece of art. Once those drab gray boards were free our team worked to cut one mural panel just enough so it would fit over the window we were working on. One by one, we took turns climbing the ladder and nailing the board secure. Climbing the ladder was so fun and provided a great view for shorter people like me! This was a little challenging for me as it had been a while since I used a hammer and nails. After hitting my thumb a few times I became quite good at getting the nails in. When we completed the first window our excitement heightened and we scurried to the next. Our efficient modus operandi was also due to the cold weather setting in and we wanted to keep our fingers warm. It was great to see the house take on a new look and it definitely caught the attention of passers by. When we finished I still had so much energy. Our group had done so much but I felt like I had more. I’m sure there will be other opportunities soon! It was an experience I shared with everyone I came into contact that weekend and urge people to cruise by and see the students’ artwork.

We continue to look for houses near the schools that painted the mural panels; if you can help identify property owners interested in letting us secure their vacant house, please contact us at 716-885-4131

The Spring rains have arrived, but at least we can finally feel our fingertips and toes. Though we continued deconstruction services and opened the Re-Source and kept it open every week for customers during the cruel winter months, we’re ecstatic for the coming of spring. We’re energized to begin exciting projects in the neighborhood. We have big plans for gardens and park spaces; artistic murals to beautify blighted buildings; and educational opportunities, as well as, unique materials for sale at the ReSOURCE. Finally, we’re already at the point where we can further expand our hours. Next week, the ReSource will always be open Tuesdays through Fridays, 7:30am to 5:00pm, Saturday 9 to 5. (Update: we’re now open Saturdays 7:30-5) We welcome you to stop in and peruse our ever growing inventory of rescued building materials.

Thank you for your on-going support.

As always, we invite you to get involved and be a part of the action! Please check out the updates below for upcoming volunteer opportunities and events.

Blight vs. Beauty

Donn Esmonde of the Buffalo News ran a commentary in this Friday’s City&Region (Section D) describing the lift in morale of the proprietors on High Street who work and live near the vacant house adopted during the Neighborhood Peace Mural Project. So many people have already been touched by that small house–the students at The Locust Street Art School who painted the panels, the groups from UB and Daemen college that focus on neighborhood transformation and the volunteers from St. Bonaventure who secure the boards to the building. We will continue boarding up more houses as the City allows.

Are you spring cleaning or upgrading your home this season?
Now is the time to get rid of the junk in your garage and basement and attic. You can donate your old sinks, counters, cabinets, tubs and other materials to us instead of leaving it on the curb or paying the landfill fees. If it fits in your car–bring it to us! If it’s too bulky for you to manage, we can schedule a pick up. (pssst, if it’s on the curb in front of your neighbors’–you can still call us!)

Mayor Youth Summer Employment Program

Do you know someone who would like to be a Buffalo ReUse Apprentice? We are so excited about the opportunity to engage with more youth in Buffalo this summer! We’ve been approved as a job site and will provide multiple experiences–green space development, urban planning, salvage pick ups, retail support, materials processing, among others. Applicants must be 14-21yrs old and there are other requirements established by the BETC. You can pick up the application from us at the ReSource, download it here or at the BETC. The deadline is Friday May 30th.

Save-the-Date(s)

• Saturday April 12th; Volunteers from Canisus College and also UB join us to board up a house near BAVPA; come out to help with that or at the ReSource and meet . . . EVERYBODY!
• First weekend in May; we’ve registered with ReTree WNY to plant 143 trees in the Masten Park and Cold Spring neighborhoods (this is around us and Queen City Farm) There will be more details about this event very soon

In today’s Buffalo News, go quickly to section D, City & Region, and scan your eyes to the left of the front page where you’ll read Donn Esmonde’s commentary on the Neighborhood Peace Mural Project board up at High Street. (If you’d like to be part of the next board up, contact volunteer {at} buffaloreuse(.)org for more details).

Thanks to Donn for visiting the ReSource and for the piece.

“Into the limbo between demolition and rehabilitation… has come a ray of hope…”

With great anticipation we were finally able to implement Phase II of the Neighborhood Peace Mural Project this past Saturday! (click on the photos to see the whole shebang). We want to express our gratitude to Jenn Hoag; she works at Home Depot and was instrumental in getting us a 25lb bucket screws, 10 boxes of nails, several hammers and socket sets. We’re very grateful and we hope that we’ll be able to get more supplies for the rest of the houses.

We arrived on site and began with a safety circle–introductions, stretches, safety concerns (yes, the “shaggy dog” made an appearance–there were about 15 in various degrees of shagginess). We met about 10 new friends from St. Bonaventure University; they chose us for part of their Service Day. BonaResponds showed up like smiling action heroes ready to unload the truck, blitz the house and get it secured in under 3 hours!
The gang spread out the murals and began measuring and trimming them to fit the windows and other openings. It’s sort of heart wrenching to trim the murals, but if we don’t, people can grab the over extended edges and yank the windows open with their bare hands. We removed the gray panels and then it was all about hammering on the colorful images!

I think people had a good time; we love meeting new friends! We met 2 photographers–Melissa and Tom; you’ll be able to see Melissa’s and Tom’s photos in the album pretty soon. We also met, Ellary, a grad student researching “mothballing” as an alternative to demolition (it’s a longterm preservation method for houses) that we are also implementing. There were a few people who were just walking by and chatted with us too.

If you’re a regular reader of this humble blog, you’ll know that 336 High St is reserved for rehab in the future and that the students from The Locust Street Art School were the mural painters. Our next board up is scheduled for April 12th; it’s a 2 story house near the Buffalo Academy of Visual and Performing Arts; we will definitely need a lot of help (pssst anybody got a cherry picker?)

Do you know other vacant houses on your block that might need improved security? If the house is also near a school, perhaps your block club Prez will write a letter in support of our effort to board up the house using the painted panels? We would prefer to board up houses that will not be demolished in the next 6months so that the students can enjoy seeing their artwork on their way to school. We have a demo list from the City, but they need to know that the neighbors support the painted panels vs. the gray panels the City uses.

If you’d like to assist with the next board up or in any other way please write us at volunteer {at} buffaloreuse(.)org

This past week I finally met the Buffalo everyone warned me about. Three years ago when I told everyone I was moving to Buffalo, they all said, “Why do you want to live there?! There’s nothing but snow!” But I was enthusiastic about Buffalo and still am. According to my landlord, I got off real easy my first winter here–and last year was pretty mild too. I still couldn’t understand why everyone was trying to terrify me about the snow; I wasn’t really all that impressed–UNTIL this past week. What an awful lot of snow we’ve had–for March?! I got stuck 3 times in one night!

Thankfully, there are a lot of brave souls in Buffalo who don’t let things like a 16″ of snow hinder their Saturday night. It was very warm in Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum where a selection of the peace murals were being exhibited. Several of the students and instructors showed up to see all of the other group’s murals and meet kids from all over the city. It was really exciting to see their faces light up as they stood in front of their murals. As always, it was also a great time to just hang out and catch up with our volunteers and supporters. You certainly missed out on some warm homemade treats; Kathleen Moriarty was a baking fiend and made a luscious (LUSHus) apple cider cake–my mouth and my eyeballs were watering! A special thanks to Sharon Cavanaugh of the WAY Program for bringing some other baked goodies. I want to express a tremendous thanks to everyone who stayed to clean up–our own Jess, Peter, Kevin, Bryan Lohr, Nic Garelick and others.

If you weren’t able to see the 30 murals first hand, there may be other opportunities soon. We are looking for more locations so that the murals might tour throughout the summer.

Just about all of you already know that students across Buffalo have been painting plywood panels which will secure vacant houses in their neighborhood. You also probably know that a selection of them have been chosen for an exhibition this Saturday at Karpeles Manuscript Library at 453 Porter Ave. (click here to view flier)

I wanted you to be able to see how happy the project has made many of the students before you actually meet them on Saturday. Each of the linked group name below will take you to one set showing how the students have been working. These are not all the participating groups–just the ones that we have received photos from to date.

Kenmore East High School
Mount St. Mary Academy
St. Joseph’s
Charter High School of Applied Technologies in Riverside
The Locust Street Art School
WNY Maritime Charter School
New Directions
Lafayette High School

I also wanted to take a moment and say a big thanks to Tom and Dave, at Karpeles–they work there and install the exhibitions you see when you visit. They did most of the work for me–in only 3hrs! There’s no way my petiteness could have managed moving all those 4×8′ panels and assembling them into A-frames without hurting myself or wrecking a display case or three.

Monday and Tuesday we began delivering paint and plywood to a few of the participating schools! It was bitterly cold, but I had warm fuzzies on the inside because we actually had something to deliver, thanks to the generosity of a handful of people who made a monetary donation over the weekend. Because of their donations, we were able to go back to Niemiec’s Builder’s Supply Store and purchase more plywood.

Amanda and I drove out to Akron on Monday afternoon to drop off the plywood and paint that Jill Cornell’s classes will use to create their peace murals. We also dropped off some paint for Nathan Backes at Oracle Charter School.

Tuesday, Steffon was a big help because we made more deliveries to: Mr. Jagiello at Lafayette High School, Denise Carr at Kenmore East High School, and Tom Kulaszewski at The Charter High School for Applied Technologies, in Riverside. All the instructors were really excited and it’s a big job for everyone involved–including the teachers–they have to manage teenagers using paint! (part of me is envious and part of me isn’t). Paint is a lot of fun! Each group will receive 20 panels and assorted paints. We still need materials for 16 other schools/groups!

So, if you can sponsor a school or bring more paint or supplies, we desperately need more so that we can continue to deliver on Monday. You can bring your used house paint and primer to the ReSOURCE this Saturday from 10-4pm. If you have old sheets or paint brushes, rollers or pans–every little bit helps! Please call us for additional delivery times or donations 716-885-4131.

If you would like to make an on-line donation, please visit our paypal page.

It’s amazing! In just a few weeks, 30 art classes and youth organizations have stepped forward to participate in the Neighborhood Peace Mural Project, an effort to address blight in the neighborhoods surrounding schools and to empower youth to take an active role in improving their communities. The endeavor has been greeted with tremendous enthusiasm by students, their teachers and principals alike; it offers the opportunity for so many students to display their artwork, improve our neighborhoods, and discuss the topics of peace, community, and government.

Despite the excitement of those currently invested in the project, we have struggled to get the support of building supply stores for donations of materials to enable the project. Many company contacts, though supportive of the project, point to high demands for plywood due to storms as a reason why they are unable to provide a donation of 400 plywood boards. With one exception, Niemiec’s Builder’s Supply (716) 884-6990 at 800 Grant Street, who committed 25 boards for the project. A huge thank you to Niemiec’s for stepping up to support the project! We also want to thank Hyatt’s Art Supply for donating some new acrylic paint tubes and brushes!

Because of the crunch, we have yet to meet our demand for board up materials/canvasses for this project. Although we haven’t received all the donations of boards needed to get us going with the project, we want to thank the many folks from the community who have stepped forward with donations of house paint…a way to recycle your unused paint for a purpose. We’ll continue to accept primer and house paint in our store at 298 Northampton Street, please contact Kevin 308-7399 to coordinate a drop off…all colors/blends are welcome!

With the intention of keeping this project moving forward, we are asking for your financial support. We are spearheading a sponsorship campaign to raise the funds necessary to get this project off the ground.

We’re also meeting with the City of Buffalo on Monday, with hopes that they will commit support for the project. If they come through in a big way (provide the plywood panels), we will commit all raised funds to greenspace projects this spring to purchase plants, flowers, shrubs, trees, and gardening materials to create dynamic community gardens and micro parks.

So please help spread the word!

$135 Full sponsorship for one school…would cover the costs for 20 canvasses for peace and supplies.

$65 Ten boards to support a community group that has adopted a vacant house in a Buffalo neighborhood near its school. (If you want to bring the boards that you’ve purchased–that’s wonderful too!)

$30 A big step towards getting us rolling.

Your sponsorships will go to work immediately! We have deliveries scheduled for this Monday with materials that have been pledged so far, yet, we have a long way to go. Please respond by email with your commitment for materials OR go straight to our donation page. Your participation will be critical to enabling the project.

Also, Mark your Calendars! On Saturday, March 8th….join us for the Neighborhood Peace Mural Exhibition at the Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum, 453 Porter Ave, from 6-8 p.m. You’ll have an opportunity to meet the young artists and see many of the canvasses that will blanket neighborhoods around schools.

Thank you and we look forward to hearing from you!

Onward,

Buffalo ReUse Staff and Volunteers