Energy Efficiency Improvements Help Chestnut Hill Neighbors in Need

Volunteers NEEDED! Help make homes in the Chestnut Hill neighborhood more energy efficient and comfortable during weather extremes. Your helping hands can make the difference for someone in need.

Volunteer Opportunities:

October 4, 11, 20, & 27
9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Click here to sign up
Learn more at HON.org/hes

Contact: Jaclyn@hon.org
or (615) 298-1108 Ext. 405

Our goal is to complete work in 10 homes over four days in October, and we need your help!

• Groups and individuals encouraged to sign up. Perfect team-building opportunity (can accommodate up to 10 volunteers per home).
• NO EXPERIENCE NEEDED! All work is supervised by a Project Leader, and all equipment and materials are provided.
• Volunteers will install attic and basement insulation, weather stripping to doors and windows, rain gardens and shade trees, and other upgrades.
• Volunteers should wear comfortable work clothes and closed-toe shoes. Lunch, water, and snacks will be provided.
• Be prepared to have fun and learn simple energy savings tips for your own home!

About this Project
Chestnut Hill is a small, diverse community in South Nashville with a strong community spirit. Most homes in the neighborhood date back to the 1930s and have had very little weatherization work done on them. All homes participating in this program are owner-occupied and low-income. Community partners making this project possible include the Village Fund, LetterLogic, the Urban Land Institute, Vanderbilt University Peabody College of Education & Human Development, and 12South Neighborhood Association.

We Value Sustainability

By Jaclyn Khoury
Hands On Nashville’s Director of Sustainability

Hands On Nashville has recently launched its new sustainability webpage! Check out our new initiatives and happenings.

In the past two years, Hands On Nashville has created three exciting programs to help serve the needs of our community in the wake of the May 2010 floods. Each of these programs are focused on engaging volunteers in long-term recovery while sharing a common thread of sustainability. Each have a strong emphasis on conservation of resources, environmental stewardship, and awareness within our communities; as a result we are able to better address current community needs while reducing the threat of future natural disasters.

In addition to our programming we strive to make our workspace as healthy and green as possible. Earlier this year, we moved into a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver office space, an old historical adaptive reuse building.

Our office has also committed to taking the Mayor’s Workplace Challenge this spring, and we were proud to receive the highest rating of gold. The challenge is a new city initiative to recognize and encourage organizations’ efforts to be green, healthy, and involved in the community. Businesses and organizations can click here to sign up for the challenge. An online scorecard includes questions about workplace policies and practices as it relates to being green, healthy, and promoting volunteerism.

To sign up to volunteer with any of our in-house programs, click here. We look forward to seeing you on the volunteer project site!

About Jaclyn: As Hands On Nashville’s Director of Sustainability, Jaclyn developed the organization’s Home Energy Savings Program, which launched in early 2011. She works with volunteers, homeowners, and her hands to create more sustainable homes in Nashville’s low-income neighborhoods. Before her move to Nashville in 2009, Jaclyn worked with Habitat for Humanity as a Construction Facilitator in Minneapolis and Central America. As a LEED ID+C and certified energy auditor, Jaclyn is determined and devoted in her commitment to integrate sustainability into the fabric of working communities. She recently earned a Master’s Degree in Sustainability and Green Building from Lipscomb University. She has a passion for mangos, hand stands, and hand-written letters.