Sidekick Missions brought 95 adults and teens the week of July 19-23 for a home repair blitz in the heart of Hopkinsville.

“It’s an army that can get a lot done,” said trip organizer Rom Pegram.

Pegram is one of three pastors of United Methodist churches in southern Wisconsin who lead Sidekick Missions. Pooling with his brother Stan’s and son Josh’s congregations, Pegram has taken church members to work in inner-city neighborhoods, Appalachian communities, Native American reservations and hurricane-hit areas.

Last summer, Sidekick contacted the city to ask if it could help with housing stock revitalization. Inner-City Residential Enterprise Zone Program Coordinator Laura Faulkner was happy to oblige.

“We are lucky to have developed a relationship with this group,” Faulkner said.
 
Between their previous Hopkinsville trips in June 2009 and this past March, the group completed 20 repair projects on local homes.

Stan Pegram said he was impressed by the city’s dedication to revamp inner-city blocks.

Faulkner said the current trip has targeted nine, mostly single family homes scattered throughout ICREZ neighborhoods. Between Monday and Thursday, crews will do repairs.

Some crews will work at the Boys and Girls Club on Walnut Street.

“We tried to find homes in every neighborhood,” Faulkner said.

Faulkner and the Pegrams scouted out possible sites from the city’s residential rehabilitation waiting list and the Kentucky Housing Corporation’s Repair Affair list.

To qualify, homes had to be owner-occupied and the repairs needed couldn’t exceed more than 25 percent of assessed value.

Pegram said the projects include roofing, porches, steps and painting. An access ramp will be built at the home of a disabled resident.

Crews labor at their project sites 8 to 10 hours a day. While working on a home, they often get to know the occupants.

Curtis Groom, a recent high school graduate from the small town of Wauzeka, Wisc., said the Hopkinsville families he has met have been gracious and quick to commend him. 
This is the second summer Groom has been in Hopkinsville and the fourth straight summer of Sidekick Missions.

Josh Pegram said the mission keeps bringing people back because it teaches that there are rewards for selflessness. He began attending the mission trips as a high schooler and has now been a co-leader seven years running.

The mission has also attracted the generosity of local individuals and organizations. Both First United Methodist Church and First Baptist Church are hosting the visitors with overnight accommodations, kitchen facilities and worship space. 

The Tie Breaker Family Aquatic Center is waiving admission fees for the entire group on Tuesday and Thursday nights.

For more information, call Laura Faulkner at (270) 887-4285 or Pastor Rom Pegram (608) 417-0060.