‘Paint-A-Thon’ in Iowa draws many
BURLINGTON, Iowa — Paint-A-Thon participants are hoping the goodwill it brings to the Burlington community each year will spread much like the virus that resulted in the cancellation of last year’s event.
Each year, hundreds of Burlington and West Burlington residents work with their neighbors, co-workers and friends to paint houses for those most in need in the Burlington community.
“It’s like a good virus,” said Mark Rosenburg, team leader for Bethany Lutheran Church, who was painting a house on Elm Court. “It goes to the community and spreads.”
The Burlington/West Burlington Paint-A-Thon is hosted each year by Two Rivers Bank and Trust in collaboration with Diamond Vogel Paint and Community Action of Southeast Iowa. One of the program’s goals is to beautify the homes of those who cannot afford a fresh coat of paint. This year’s event marks the 28th annual Paint-A-Thon. Last year’s was canceled because of covid-19.
Rosenberg himself has participated in Paint-A-Thon for at least 20 years but said he was not an original participant. When Paint-A-Thon first started in Burlington, an organizer reached out to all the churches in Burlington asking for help. Since then, it has become an annual tradition for many churches.
Rosenberg said Bethany Lutheran has adopted the motto “God’s work, our hands” as a symbol of what they want to do in the community. Throughout the years, members have participated in a number of activities aimed at helping members of the community, but this year the church has thrown its all into working on their Paint-A-Thon home.
Bethany Lutheran was working on a house on the 1600 block of Elm Court. They were also working with Tineco and Industrial Motors.
Bill Schwerin, who lives at the Elm Court home, did not seek out inclusion in this year’s Paint-A-Thon. He gets meals five times a week delivered to his home, and one of the people who delivers meals to him said they thought that he should apply.
“I said, ‘Yeah, go ahead and put my name in.’ A couple of weeks later, I found out that I had been selected,” Schwerin said.
As part of its annual process, individuals can apply to have their home painted or can be nominated by someone else. Community Action goes through a selection process in which they seek out the neediest homeowners to receive assistance.
It isn’t just the siding of the house that the group was working to paint. They also sandblasted and repainted metal railings and were working toward painting Schwerin’s deck. The detached garage of the home also was painted.
“We have seen people so gratified after they get their house done,” Rosenberg said. “It’s a moving experience.”
The team already had been working on the house for three days but still had several hours worth of work left to be completed.
Prior to the Paint-A-Thon, almost all of the homes on that block of Elm Court were white. Schwerin asked for his home to be painted Stone Grey, which will make it stand out from other homes on the block.
“We have seen people so gratified after they get their house done. It’s a moving experience.”
— Mark Rosenburg, Bethany Lutheran Church, Burlington, Iowa