Exodus Homes, a faith based United Way agency providing supportive housing for homeless recovering people, has received two grants to fund an upgrade for their hauling enterprises in Exodus Works, their revenue generating vocational training program. The net profit of Exodus Works is a primary source of funding for Exodus Homes.
Some of the most requested services of Exodus Works are cleanouts and hauling for the Hickory area. Exodus Homes’ residents working as volunteers in Exodus Works help people clean out barns, sheds, attics, garages, warehouses, hoarder houses, and abandoned homeless camps as well as hauling landscape debris. Every week they have had to make multiple trips to the landfill to dump the debris using a regular pick up truck and landscape trailer. As demand for this service has grown, Exodus Homes graduate and Exodus Works Supervisor George Reid made it clear they needed an upgrade to be more cost effective and time efficient. “I have been begging Rev. Susan for years to help us get a dump trailer so we could make less trips to the landfill and only handle the trash one time,” he said.
The Rev. Susan Smith, Exodus Homes assistant executive director, has been looking for funders to help and recently was successful in securing two grants for the upgrade project. Last fall a local foundation that prefers to remain anonymous granted them $10,000 to purchase a new 2021 Leonard GT-714 Griffin Built 14,000 lb. (7 ton) dump trailer with a maximum load of 10,000 lbs. This was just what they needed but for a dump trailer that size, but they needed a larger pick up truck capable of towing it. Recently the George Foundation awarded a $25,000 grant to help them purchase a truck for this purpose. Mitzi Goins, Exodus Homes graduate and Exodus Works Asset Manager looked high and low for the right truck that was in their budget. With the help of Street Source, a locally owned auto mechanic shop, they found a 2008 Ford F 350 4 door diesel 4 wheel drive online in Texas and had it shipped here. With the new dump trailer and F 350 pick up, Exodus Works is ready to take their hauling enterprise to the next level.
“This is a dream come true for us. We are deeply grateful to the George Foundation for their generous gift that will help us use our new dump trailer. Local foundations have truly been our partners over the years to help us create work opportunities for our residents” she said.
To request a cleanout or hauling service from Exodus Works please call 828-324-2390.
