It all started when Sarah Troutman, Vice President of Interior Design and Principal at HagerSmith, happened to meet Jackie Craig a few days after Christmas this past year. She walked in to The Green Chair Project’s downtown Raleigh location to donate some items and ended up having a serendipitous conversation with Jackie, the Executive Director, that would prove to be the beginning of a wonderful partnership.
The Green Chair Project is a 501(c)(3) that provides home furnishings donated from the community to families and individuals who have transitioned from experiencing homelessness or disasters and have secured sustainable housing.
As they talked, Sarah shared that she was interested in finding ways for the Interiors group to possibly donate some of their time to Green Chair. When Jackie mentioned they had just bought their building and were hoping to renovate, she knew the opportunity to help had just grown exponentially.
Since then, HagerSmith has teamed up with Green Chair to assist them with a full interior and exterior renovation of their facility. “We have been involved through all the design phases, to ensure the smooth completion of the renovations. All our services have been donated with the hopes of finding other partners willing to discount or donate materials and services to maximize the money Green Chair has raised through grants and the community,” says Sarah.
Through this process, HagerSmith has been greatly encouraged by the generosity of the community who have already donated other items; including Bass, Nixon & Kennedy who have donated all plumbing, mechanical and electrical engineering design services. This project will be completed in phases and should be permitted in mid-August. It is scheduled to begin construction in September.
“There is no greater honor than to use our gifts and talents to invest in a place like Green Chair, a place that truly loves and serves our neighbors with dignity,” adds Sarah.
The Green Chair Project has helped almost 2000 families furnish their homes and start new beginnings since they opened in 2010. To read more about what The Green Chair Project does visit www.thegreenchair.org.
