Port Chester EMS HQ Gets A Makeover

[Guest EM2FD]

Volunteers give Port Chester EMS headquarters a makeover

By LIZ SADLER

THE JOURNAL NEWS

(Original publication: June 16, 2006)

PORT CHESTER — Volunteers donned work shirts and surgical masks yesterday as they sanded, primed and painted the headquarters of the Port Chester-Rye-Rye Brook Emergency Medical Services.

"We're not just soccer moms," said Kerry Scala of Harrison, wielding a dripping-wet paint roller. "Who needs extreme home makeover?"

Scala was one of 10 members of the volunteer Twig organization who prepared the Ellendale Avenue building for a major makeover tomorrow, involving some 30 volunteers. The Twig teamed up with Habitat for Humanity of Westchester to refurbish the squat stucco building.

"Obviously, when we came here there was a huge need — and this was kind of like The 'Little Engine that Could,' " said Scala, a pregnant mother of four. "They had been providing services to all of us and never really asking for anything."

The group planned to replace the ceilings, floors and lighting in the building's two dormitories, recreation room and main office, all badly in need of repair.

"This is some drastic stuff we're getting done here," said Scott Moore, administrator of the Port Chester-Rye-Rye Brook EMS. "We run on a very tight budget and it's always hard to get money to do things. Now, with The Twig's support, it gives us the opportunity to get this work done."

The Twig was formed in 1911 as a sewing circle to make bandages for New York United Hospital Medical Center. It later morphed into a powerful fundraising arm of the hospital and an important social group for residents of Rye and beyond.

But after United filed for bankruptcy and closed in February 2005, the Twig had to reshape its mission. The group decided to continue to support the health-care needs of the community through other causes.

The Twig is funneling its proceeds — so far, $260,000 — to the EMS group and Open Door Family Medical Centers for now.

The money for the EMS will go toward training, a new ambulance and the renovation. The Twig got local vendors to donate items, like carpeting from Carpet Trends in Rye and paint from Wallauer Decorating in Port Chester. Habitat for Humanity contributed furnishings and volunteers.