“Rock the Block” Brings Exterior Repairs to Menasha Neighborhood

By Erinn Taylor

MENASHA, Wis. (WFRV) – Jamie DeWine says that when she first heard of “Rock the Block,” it seemed too good to be true.

Ryan Roth, Community Development Manager for the Greater Fox Cities Habitat for Humanity says that’s not an uncommon reaction.

“Sometimes the homeowners are like, ‘what’s the astrict, what’s the catch?'” he told Local 5 Thursday.

But as it turns out, there’s no catch here, and Jamie found that out when she finally gave organizers a call after several conversations.

“I was in need of windows for sure, and the process was really easy, and here we are today,” Jamie said as volunteers work on repairs to the exterior of her home located in the Friendship Trailhead Neighborhood.

Jamie will pay for the repairs for a zero-interest loan that organizers helped her apply for.

Her neighborhood is one of nine that has undergone a “Rock the Block” makeover since the program’s inception.

“We engage every homeowner in a ‘Rock the Block’ neighborhood,” Ryan explained. “We send them letters, we knock on their door, we talk to them.”

The program focuses on exterior repairs.

“It’s the face of what’s going on in a neighborhood,” Ryan said. “It’s the first thing you see when you drive down the street, and I think by improving all of these homes, we’re improving the neighborhood.”