A Volunteer’s Story

Damien Owens is a carpenter by trade and teaches at Construction Careers Center charter high school near downtown St. Louis. Damien has lived in St. Louis for 26 years and has been volunteering at Rebuilding Together St Louis for 5 years. Damien first found out about Rebuilding Together through a friend. He started as a volunteer on Rebuilding Day, got hooked and came back to serve as a House Captain for 4 years.

Damien’s favorite part of the Rebuilding Day is to see the smile on the homeowners’ face and their gratitude for the work that was completed.  He also enjoys the family oriented atmosphere RT provides and the bond he is able to create with the homeowner.

As a House Captain, Damien creates the scope of work that needs to be done; he buys supplies and manages the volunteers on the day of the event. One year on Rebuilding Day Damien worked on an older woman’s house. It had been over 4 years since she was able to go down her back steps and enjoy her backyard. The steps were extremely deteriorated and unsafe. Damian and his crew worked all day to fix the steps. When they completed the work the homeowner started crying and was extremely grateful for the time and effort they had donated to her home. This experience encouraged Damien to come back year after year to help older adults in the St. Louis area

Damien Owens