Like a good neighbor, Oldsmar is there

A volunteer force turns out to paint and do repairs and yardwork for elderly and disabled residents.

OLDSMAR - Volunteers ranging from middle school students to the mayor turned out Sunday to paint and to trim trees for residents unable to do the work themselves.

It was the city's first Good Neighbor Day, a community program where volunteers do basic repair work. About 20 people raked yards, cut limbs and painted trim at two homes.

"It was beautiful," said Mayor Jerry Beverland, who came up with the idea for Good Neighbor Day. "It was something I had been wanting to do for a long time."

One of the homes was on Lakeview Drive. The owner, Constance Cosentino, 82, is legally blind and has a bad hip.

Cosentino said she was getting letters that her lawn was full of weeds and her house needed a coat of paint. She called City Clerk Lisa Lene asking for assistance.

The work started at 2:30 p.m. Sunday. Workers brought the supplies and applied a fresh almond-colored coat to the outside of the home.

"I was so nervous." said Cosentino, who has lived in Oldsmar for 16 years. "I couldn't see half of what was going on. It was like a party."

And there's more work to be done. Her home's trim needs to be finished, and in some spots, replaced. The driveway needs paint, and weeds need pulling.

But the volunteers are coming back, she said.

"It's such a wonderful, wonderful thing they're doing, especially for the seniors and the handicapped," Cosentino said. "My friends and relatives will never believe the mayor of Oldsmar was working on my house."

Workers also trimmed trees at the Arlington Avenue home of Douglas and Rosemarie Highfill. Douglas Highfill is handicapped.

Rosemarie Highfill said she called several tree cutters but they never returned her calls. She saw something about the program in a community newspaper and called the city.

"The trees had a lot of limbs," said Rosemarie Highfill, 51. "There were vines that needed to be cut. They did a great job. It looks good."

Beverland said he started Good Neighbor Day to help elderly and handicapped residents with basic housework.

He recalled an incident about a year ago in which an elderly widow told him her house needed painting

"I told her, "You know what? I'm going to start that program,"' Beverland said. "I guess that's how it really got started."

The Rev. Al Zwan, pastor of Gateway Community Church, and Beverland worked together to organize Good Neighbor Day.

There were volunteers from the church, Carwise Middle School and other residents who just wanted to help out.

The local business community donated supplies.

Beverland said he plans to have Good Neighbor Day two or three times a year, or more, if he finds more residents who need the help.

"It worked well," Zwan said. "We'll now come back to the city and try to identify some other homes that need repair. We'll continue to be a good neighbor."

- Megan Scott can be reached at (727) 445-4183 or mscott@sptimes.com

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