Repairs included exterior and interior painting, removal and repair of a rotting staircase (that allowed the resident to access her top floor for the first time in years), overgrown yard debris clean-up, demolition and re-pouring of concrete stairs, bathroom overhauls and repairs, and much more. These repairs were “not major tasks per se,” said Nathan, a volunteer, “but serve a real need for general labor… Everyone has a task list of things that you want to do and things that you can’t do whether that has to do with money, age, or ability.” Nathan went on to explain that him and his wife, Jan, give back whenever they get a chance and said “when I think about hitting that stage, I hope that there’s friends, family, or different organizations to help out.” The good Samaritan couple, who had just spent the previous day painting at their church, love to spend their time giving back to their community despite living off one income (as Jan has taken over full-time care of her mother-in-law with stage three Alzheimer’s). Jan, a long-time shopper/volunteer at the ReBuilding Center and Mississippi Avenue resident for the past 10 years, had some insight into the issue saying that it makes her sad to see the people in the area be pushed out and they are “what makes Mississippi what it is. Portland is made of unique neighborhoods and that’s why everyone wants to move here, but when you price people out, you are taking away that neighborhood-y feel.” She believes that developers and builders should respect the neighborhood that they are moving into, considering the architecture and price of the area. Having worked in property management for 30 years, Jan believes there is a way of going into a neighborhood and maintaining the character, and that it’s “not just [the developer’s duty] to build responsibly but if you’re going into a neighborhood where people have lived for a long time, you should put something back into that community.”