Volunteers in Pawtucket build benches for military organizations

PAWTUCKET, R.I. (WLNE) — In downtown Pawtucket dozens of volunteers took hours out of their day to build picnic tables to be donated to local military organizations.

Volunteers from 16 different Home Depots in Southern New England met at the Elisha Project’s facility downtown to build the picnic tables and benches.

ToolBank USA CEO Trey Bearden said that the idea came about as a way to help build community.

“We found when we started this program that picnic tables and park benches are very easy to distribute across the community,” he said. “And also the thing we love about picnic tables is it provides a place for people to come together, to gather to share a meal, to share stories, to build relationships with people. It provides that community interaction element and there’s so many places around our communities that need spaces to do that.”

The Elisha Project was founded in 2011 by George Ortiz, himself a veteran, and has focused on volunteering and helping those in need.

“We started out by giving out lunches on the corner of Dean Street across from Crossroads,” Ortiz said. “That has morphed in five years to food rescue, now we do food, furniture, household items, over-the-counter medicine, with a lot of different partners.”

Home Depot Manager Jimmy Poole said it gave him an opportunity to teach his workers about the company’s values.

“There’s probably 25 first time volunteers here, so when you come and see this, donate your time and give back and hear where things are going to help, it’s just a natural thing,” he said.