Carrboro resident to receive home repair through Fix-A-Home

Surrounded by family pictures and aging couches, Jack Neville points out the large cracks in the ceiling of his Carrboro home.

“We’ve had rain that has caused this crack to leak,” he said.

Neville, this year’s recipient of the Greater Chapel Hill Association of Realtors’ Fix-A-Home project, will receive a new roof this October.

The project, funded in part this year by a $2,000 grant from a local nonprofit, brings together groups of local businesses, realtors and volunteers each year to help a local resident in need.

The reconstruction on Neville’s home is scheduled to begin in October. The roof is the biggest part of the project, though it will also include some outdoor landscaping, new light fixtures and fresh paint for the walls.

Repairs on the roof have already begun. The replacement materials for the roof were acquired with support from the Chapel Hill Veterans of Foreign Wars post, where Neville is a member.

Neville grew up in Carrboro and lived there until he was called to serve in the Korean War. After the war, Neville returned to the United States to marry his love, Evelyn. The couple has called Carrboro home since 1967.

Jo Ellen Munsee, a member of the Fix-A-Home committee, said she wanted to give back to a couple who had given so much of themselves to the community around them.

“Both Evelyn and Jack worked for the UNC system for many years, and Jack retired from UNC’s Facilities Services Division after 20 years of service,” she said.

Local companies Herndon Construction, Fitch Lumber Company and Tri-City Insulation have also donated their services to better the home. The companies will work with volunteers in the next month to fix the property.

Caroline Shillito, owner and principal designer at emma delon, LLC, and a member of the planning committee for the project, said the Nevilles were chosen through an application and review process, adding that after reading all of the applications, the Nevilles’ situation seemed to stand out.

“Applications open to the local community around January or February,” she said. “We evaluate them to see if the renovation is do-able and fits the criteria of the application guidelines.”

Upon hearing the news of being selected, the Nevilles said they were excited for the forthcoming home improvements.

“They were really thrilled to hear the good news from the Fix-a-Home project,” Munsee said.

Neville said he feels very grateful for the future repairs.

“It is wonderful. Everybody has been great, and I really appreciate it,” he said.

Contact the desk editor at city@dailytarheel.com.