Senior citizens and disabled residents who face challenges maintaining their homes are getting a helping hand from Zions Bank’s 27th annual Paint-a-Thon service project.
The Salt Lake City home of Laura and Chris Hathaway will receive a makeover with help from Zions Bank President and CEO Scott Anderson, Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams and City Councilman Andrew Johnston on June 12. They will join other Zions employees who are “brushing up” on community service to help low-income elderly, disabled and veteran homeowners.
Throughout the service project that continues across the state through June 24, more than 2,800 Zions Bank employees and their families are volunteering to clean, scrape and paint 44 homes in Idaho and Utah.
The average age of this year’s home owner is 74, with an average monthly income of $1,678. Projects completed during the annual week-long event were selected with the assistance of nominations from the public, Salt Lake County Aging Services, state housing agencies, community organizations and local churches.
Zions Bank is committed to helping senior citizens remain in their homes as long as possible, maintaining their independence, dignity and health. Nearly 90 percent of people over age 65 want to stay in their home for as long as possible, and 80 percent believe their current residence is where they will always live, according to the AARP Public Policy Institute.
“Every year, we enjoy rolling up our sleeves and helping our neighbors like the Hathaways spruce up their homes and yards,” said Zions Bank President and CEO Scott Anderson. “We appreciate what the Hathaways do to help others who are visually impaired, and we’re grateful for civic leaders like Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams and City Councilman Andrew Johnston who are joining us in this effort.”
Anderson is so passionate about the project that he agreed to have other bankers dump a full gallon of blue latex paint on his head in a video in order to encourage employees to volunteer.
In addition to painting, Zions employees provide yard clean-up, pruning, mowing, planting and minor repairs as needed by homeowners. The cost for all paint and supplies is contributed by Zions Bank.
Launched in 1991, Zions Bank’s Paint-a-Thon began as a volunteer project for a dozen homes along Utah’s Wasatch Front. Over the past 26 years, Zions Bank employees have put aside summer pastimes for a week each year — volunteering in the evenings after work and on Saturday — to paint more than 1,090 homes throughout Idaho and Utah. Not counting the dollar value of volunteer hours through the years, the bank has donated more than $1 million toward beautifying homes in the two states.
