By Don Bradley
Someone down on their luck and needing help feeding the kids might not want to share their story with the whole building.
But that’s how it had been at the Grandview Assistance Program. For years, the non-profit organization, known as GAP, had operated in what had been a school library with walls that didn’t reach the ceiling and thin paneling.
Not a lot of privacy.
Now, thanks to a $500,000 renovation, the place has offices with real walls and doors. People come in needing help with food, rent money or utility assistance, they can talk to a caseworker in private.
“This is about respect and dignity,” said GAP executive director John Maloney. “There was no insulation before. Voices echoed off the walls and everyone who comes in here deserves respect. And people needing help shouldn’t have to walk into a gloomy place with dingy carpet.
“That’s what all this work was for.”
A ribbon-cutting was set for Sept. 14 at the building at 1121 Main St. in Grandview. GAP board members and volunteers, along with city, school district and chamber officials, were expected to attend.
The event included a surprise $5,000 donation from the nonprofit A Warriors Mission. Mike Lane, the group’s spokesperson, said the money was to “fill the new freezer with meat.”
The building is owned by the Grandview School District which paid for the renovation. Starting in April, workers gutted the structure, removed asbestos, and then redid the interior with new walls, ceiling, flooring, and heating and cooling systems. The project also included an addition for a $30,000 walk-in freezer.
“Sometimes we would have to turn down meat donations because we didn’t have freezer space,” Maloney said Wednesday during a tour of the new building. “Hopefully, this should take care of that.”
GAP serves the city of Grandview and most of the Grandview School District, including the Martin City area. They provide a monthly food pantry, rent and utility assistance, hygiene items and school supplies.
With a full-time staff of three and lots of volunteers, the agency helps between 2,500 and 2,800 households in a year. Coming up, they will provide about 200 Thanksgiving meals and they adopt families at Christmas.
During the 6-month renovation, GAP operated out of a closed medical clinic nearby. A perk of that arrangement was all the bathrooms in the place.
“We each had our own private bathroom,” Maloney said with a smile. “Now we have only one, but this is better.”