As a handful of kids with the group Young Knowledgeable Men approached Rosalind Dunmore’s Southeast D.C. home on Tuesday afternoon, the sidewalks and her lawn remained covered with snow.
The roads and cars were covered too, and with shovels in tow, the kids walked through the snow to ring her doorbell. When she answered, the group said they’d arrived to help clear the snow.
Dunmore was ecstatic, recalling that she had asked for help through the city’s Snow Heroes program. She smiled and expressed her appreciation, and watched through her front door as the kids got to work.
“This is a lifesaver. Trust me,” Dunmore said. “Due to health issues, we are not able to get out and do what we normally would do.”
The program, according to Serve DC Chief Service Officer Dominique Scott, pairs residents across the city with volunteers and organizations willing to help.
The city provides supplies, such as shovels, salt, hats, scarves, gloves and hand warmers. Volunteers sign up, and the snow team “heroes” are deployed to help in a location within a three-block radius of where they live.
Hundreds of volunteers have signed up to help, Scott said, but there are almost 1,000 requests for assistance. Volunteers usually assist with three houses, but groups that sign up to help can do dozens.
“Kids could be asleep, watching TV, playing games, but these young men are out here, dedicated to helping the people in their community,” Scott said.
Quentin Milner, founder and president of Young Knowledgeable Men, Inc., said the group was also a part of the Snow Heroes initiative last year. The kids, who range in age from 9 to 12, expected to help with at least 20 homes near Raleigh Street on Tuesday.
“Instead of them knowing about all the bad stuff that they see all day, we teach them these good values,” Milner said.
Dilan Milner said he wanted to be part of the group helping because “our community really needs some help.”
Kodi Snider, meanwhile, wanted to spend the snow day helping, “so I can give back to the community.”
Volunteers are emailed a list of residents in need in their neighborhoods, and are given 24 to 36 hours to finish the job. Residents who are interesting in signing up to volunteer can do so online.
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