Building More Freedom Together: SAWs Partners with Habitat for Humanity of Johnson County
Servants at Work (SAWs) is excited to partner with Habitat for Humanity of Johnson County to help more local residents gain the safe, accessible entrances they need to remain independent in their homes.
The partnership brings together two volunteer-powered organizations with a shared belief: everyone deserves a home that supports their safety, dignity and independence.
By combining Habitat for Humanity of Johnson County’s experienced volunteers and construction leadership with SAWs’ wheelchair ramp program, the organizations can increase local building capacity and serve more Johnson County, Indiana residents in need of accessible home entrances.
Building Freedom for Marilyn
The first collaborative build helped Marilyn, a Johnson County resident whose front steps currently keep her from coming and going independently.
Marilyn uses a scooter and rollator for mobility. Navigating the steps outside her home required another person’s help. Her daughter often had to carry her mobility equipment up and down the steps so Marilyn could leave the house.
When Marilyn’s daughter applied to SAWs for a ramp, she shared something simple that captures exactly why this project matters: her mother wants the freedom to check her own mail and to leave and return home when she wants, without always needing someone else to help.
On August 15, volunteers from SAWs and Habitat for Humanity of Johnson County worked together to help make that possible.
The new wheelchair ramp gives Marilyn a safer, more accessible way in and out of her home and greater freedom to participate in everyday life.
It is a powerful example of what this partnership is all about.
More Ramps. More Volunteers. More Local Impact.
For someone living with a permanent mobility disability, just a few steps can become a major barrier between home and the outside world.
A wheelchair ramp can change that.
SAWs builds ADA-compliant wheelchair ramps for qualifying individuals with permanent or long-term mobility disabilities. Through this new partnership, Habitat volunteers will help SAWs reach more Johnson County neighbors who need that freedom.
“This is a fun way we can serve clients a lot quicker,” said Tim Thurston, Executive Director of SAWs, in a recent Daily Journal story about the partnership.
Habitat brings experienced construction leadership and a strong local volunteer network to the effort. SAWs provides the ramp-building program, training and tools needed to turn that experience into greater accessibility throughout the county.
Creating New Ways to Serve
The partnership also creates something valuable beyond the ramps themselves: more opportunities for people to serve their community.
Unlike a home construction project that may take weeks or months, a SAWs ramp can be installed in a single day. That makes a ramp build an accessible, hands-on volunteer experience for individuals, families, businesses, civic organizations and community groups.
Both organizations see particular potential for engaging the next generation of volunteers, including young professionals, high school students and those exploring construction and skilled-trade pathways. A ramp build gives them the opportunity to work alongside experienced volunteers while seeing the impact of their service almost immediately.
Stronger Together in Johnson County
For SAWs, partnerships like this are an important part of expanding our ability to serve more people while keeping the work rooted in local communities.
Habitat for Humanity of Johnson County brings skilled volunteers, construction knowledge and deep community connections. SAWs brings more than two decades of experience building accessibility ramps for people with permanent mobility disabilities.
Together, those strengths can translate into more neighbors like Marilyn getting the freedom to safely enter and leave their own homes.
As Tim told the Daily Journal:
“We want to give people their freedom back.”
Help Us Build Freedom
Whether you give your time, make a donation or help connect someone in need with SAWs, you can be part of building greater freedom and independence in our communities.
There are many ways to help us build freedom through mobility: