A new roof for Eli’s Place

Published 10:10 am Saturday, April 26, 2008

POULSBO — Not much signifies safety and security like a solid roof overhead, and for transition house Eli’s Place, that couldn’t be more true.

A temporary home program started by the Poulsbo-North Kitsap Rotary Club in collaboration with the Kitsap County Consolidated Housing Authority and YWCA Alive, Eli’s Place has provided the invaluable comforts of home to abused women and children for five years as of today.

And despite the weather, this winter is sure to be a dry and toasty one within its walls with a newly-built roof now providing protection overhead.

“It’s been a real focus the last few months,” said Poulsbo-North Kitsap Rotary Club president Donna Strep.

The roof, which KCCHA director of public affairs Sarah Lee said had developed leaks, was replaced early this fall. The KCCHA had acquired the materials for the project but did not have the budget to complete the construction, so the Poulsbo-North Kitsap Rotarians pitched in both man hours and sweat equity to get the new covering in place.

“All we could pay for was the materials. Meanwhile, there’s this blue tarp on top of this house, which is not right,” Lee said. “Rotary saved the day. They said ‘We’ll do it’…Thank goodness for Rotary, they really are our heroes.”

Rotary member Ardis Morrow, who championed the idea for Eli’s Place, said despite some bad weather and several days of building, the Rotarians — as they so often do — pulled together to complete a much-needed community project.

“They stuck with it and got it all done,” she said.

Morrow said the Rotarians are continuing to partner with the KCCHA and YWCA Alive to turn the duplex’s garage area into a family room. A shed was recently donated and constructed by its members as well.

“We’re really proud of the success we’ve had there,” she said. “It just takes everyone to keep the thing going. It took everyone to get it established.”

New windows and a new heating system were installed when the house was first transformed, and the Rotary club has continually worked to both help with the structure’s upkeep and fill it inside with home necessities, including linens, furniture and tableware. Morrow said community donations have been vital in making the home successful.

“When we first established the home we had to do so many, many things,” she said. Once the roof’s leak developed, deterioration began, and it was clear a new one was needed. “I am sure that it would have contributed to mold.”

Eli’s Place supports families for up to a year, as mothers and their children work to separate themselves from abusive situations, receive counseling and re-establish their lives.

One family was permitted to stay longer so the mother could continue schooling she had begun at Olympic College. As far as Morrow knows, none of the families have returned to their abusive situations after leaving, and YWCA Alive keeps in close contact to make sure they continue to thrive.

Lee said without the support of the Rotary Club, Eli’s Place would never have become — and be able to stay — a reality.

“This is one of those cool stories about how community groups not only saw a need but they did something about it,” she said. As the KCCHA purchased the property and YWCA Alive worked to turn it into a useful program, Lee said the Rotary Club remained vigilant that the community benefit from it as much as possible.

“Every step of the way the Rotary was making it even better,” she said. “They’re doing something for people that they will never meet, they will never intersect with their lives again. They’re showing them somebody cares. This isn’t just a building… it’s a second start.”