Senior citizens on fixed incomes rarely have the money to repaint their homes.
As a result, for more than three decades, volunteers across Colorado have participated in what has become one of the state’s largest volunteer events.
It is simply called “the Paint-A-Thon.”
Today, representatives of various cities gathered to scrape and prime for painting the Edgewater home of senior Walter Shipman as a kickoff to the 31st season of the Paint-A-Thon.
The Paint-A-Thon sponsors, Brothers Redevelopment Inc., hope to paint 100 homes of income-eligible seniors 60 years and older between now and the end of August.
The average age of residents whose homes have been painted over the years is 74, and they’re living on fixed incomes of less than $1,100 a month, said Jeff Martinez, spokesman for Brothers Redevelopment.
The average cost of painting the homes is $2,500 to $5,000 which is “pretty exorbitant” for senior citizens on fixed incomes, said Martinez.
Brothers is a nonprofit organization that provides housing and housing services to low-income, elderly and disabled residents.
Since the event’s 1978 inception, Brothers and the volunteers working with them have painted more than 6,400 homes in Colorado.
Martinez said that the volunteers who worked on Shipman’s home today will return to their communities and seek out other volunteers to paint homes throughout the summer.
Among those attending were Commerce City Mayor Paul Natale, Edgewater Mayor Bonnie McNulty and Lakewood Mayor pro-tem Tom Quinn. Also working on Shipman’s house were Denver City Councilmen Rick Garcia and Paul Lopez, Aurora City Councilman Larry Beer, Westminster council member Mary Lindsey and Wheat Ridge City Councilwoman Karen Berry.
The primary sponsors this season are First Bank, Diamond Vogel Paints, Mountain West Sports Network, Comcast and KEZW-AM. Other sponsors include American Family Insurance, the Colorado Housing and Financing Authority and the Denver Employees Volunteer Opportunities.
More information about the Paint-A-Thon is available by calling 303-202-6340 or by visiting .
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com
