Many Rotarian hands made light work on Saturday as the Rotary Club of Morristown worked with Lakeway Area Habitat for Humanity to build a ramp for a woman in need.

Club members got out their tools and met at the house of Miss Jean Anderson and replaced an older wood walkway with a ramp designed to safely accommodate travel in and out of her house.

“The Rotarians were delightful,” Lakeway Habitat Community Outreach Coordinator Leslie Brenna said. “They had a great work ethic and brought great attitudes. Ms. Jean was out there. She was who we did the ramp for, and she just had a good time loving on all of them.”

Anderson is a senior citizen with mobility issues and limited resources which is precisely the type of person Habitat tries to help. Projects like this are designed to keep homeowners in their homes. Anderson showed gratitude for the effort.

“She was so excited,” Brenna said. “She made us take a hundred pictures to show all of her friends at church the next day and made everybody little treat bags with peanut butter crackers in them.”

The Rotarians showed the same kind of enthusiasm for their neighbor.

“It was a great way to spend Saturday,” Rotarian Shane Hodge said. “I really enjoyed meeting the homeowner, and she was extremely excited about what we were putting in and what was being put together for her.

“And it really brought me more joy to spend time with the (other Rotarians) in the community, working together towards a project. It was just nice to step back and see something that we accomplished as a group.”

Hodge said that the Rotary Club tries to figure out many ways to serve.

“Rotary is a community-driven organization that people can be a part of and we’re always looking for new members.

“And one of the things we’re proud of is the fact that we’re always looking for ways to give back, whether that be with fundraising, with the Christmas toy drive, with the Christmas shopping drive that we do during the holidays and projects like teaming up with Habitat for Humanity.”

Brenna said the Rotary Club funded nearly all of the supplies for the project, helping Habitat complete repairs that otherwise would not fit within its budget. She said Habitat homeowners must go through an income qualification process and must live and work in the community before being selected for assistance.

Noting partnerships with outside organizations benefit both groups by expanding awareness of their missions while giving volunteers an opportunity to directly serve local residents in need, Brenna said that any organizations can reach out to Lakeway Area Habitat for Humanity by calling 423-581-1661.