About us
COVER’s mission is to foster hope and build community in the Upper Valley. We do this by bringing together homeowners and volunteers to complete urgently needed home repair projects, and by facilitating the reuse of household goods and building materials at The COVER Store.
COVER grew from a collaboration between Dartmouth College students, other community volunteers, and a Bates College graduate who wanted to complete home repair projects that would benefit families and individuals with low incomes. The volunteers recognized need in the community and COVER began to fill the void.
Our programs include: Home Repair, Weatherization, and The Cover Store.
Home Repair projects include roof repair and construction, accessibility ramps, building new stairs, installing railings and grab-bars, weatherization and energy efficiency measures, and floor repair. 85% of COVER homeowners make less than the Federal Poverty Guideline.
Qualifying home repair and weatherization projects must meet the following criteria:
We further support the mission with the effective reuse of household goods and building materials. You can find donated building materials, household goods, major appliances and used furniture at low cost. Our Store Assistance Program makes goods available to customers at no cost if they are referred by another agency.
Volunteers are essential to COVER’s work. While staff select homeowners, design projects, prepare for the work days and supervise the work, volunteers are literally the driving force of our effort. Often the homeowners and their family are engaged in the work also.
Our overarching goal is to build community and improve the lives of our constituents, including homeowners and volunteers. COVER values and respects the services, gifts and contributions of both low-income homeowners and volunteers.
Volunteer for an urgent Home Repair or Weatherization project in your community.
Our Current Home in WRJ, VT
In February of 1998, COVER Home Repair formalized its operation under the umbrella of Tri-County Community Action Programs, Inc. (TCCAP). In 2001, COVER moved into a White River Junction building that provided space for the development of our Reuse Program and provided a space for The Cover Store. Since then the store has provided a steadily increasing amount of funding and supplies for the Home Repair Program and continues to divert usable materials from the waste stream.
In 2003, a group of talented local citizens came together to form COVER’s Board of Advisors. COVER is currently co-directed by a team of four that consists of a Home Repair Program Director, a Reuse Program Director, a Volunteer Coordinator and a Development Director. Our staff also includes a Cover Store Manager.
COVER also benefits from the good work of AmeriCorps members, who serve one-year terms with our program. In the future, COVER volunteers will continue to contribute to all aspects of program success. The work of COVER unquestionably could not take place without the generous support of the local community.
Frequently Asked Questions
COVER is a community-based, non-profit program that organizes volunteers to make urgently needed repairs for qualified, low income homeowners in the Upper Valley. The repair work and volunteers are supervised by construction professionals. A volunteer Board of Directors from throughout the Upper Valley oversees the operation of the organization.
Our goal is to restore hope and build community among families that are struggling with challenging housing and financial circumstances that are often at the crisis level. By organizing volunteers from the community to work jointly on these repair projects with homeowners, we find that homeowner’s confidence increases significantly. In addition, the homes become dry, safe, and warm.
The majority of the work we do is accessibility ramp installation and roof replacements. In addition, we install fall prevention devices like grab bars and railings. During the winter, we also deliver our weatherization services to help seal a home against cold air drafts and we do furnace cleanings. These energy conservation services help save heating fuel and make the homes warmer.
Families or individuals who meet the income guidelines, have an urgent home repair need that can safely be done with volunteer labor, and live within 45 minutes of White River junction in both Vermont and New Hampshire.
Funding comes primarily from the COVER Store, private grants and donations from various foundations and individuals as well as various religious, civic, and school organizations. We also receive support from local town and state budgets and the federal government.
80% of the COVER materials budget goes toward ramps and roofs.
The balance goes toward other needed safety or energy conservation repairs or improvements.
Yes, COVER Home Repair is a 501-c-3 tax exempt organization.