Jacksonville, Fla. – Fleet Readiness Center Southeast (FRCSE) Detachment Jacksonville Sailors came together to help out the local community by volunteering at the Habitat for Humanity Jacksonville (HabiJax) ReStore March 31.
The team of about 20 Sailors spent the day organizing and cleaning the warehouse, assisting customers and offloading trucks arriving with donated items.
Aviation Electronics Technician 1st Class (AW/SW) Travis Galloway rallied the team and coordinated the event. “FRCSE Detachment Jacksonville Sailors spend as much time as possible helping out different organizations in Duval and Clay Counties,” he said. “As the command’s volunteer coordinator, I try to switch up the events to make it fun and to assist various agencies. We’ve helped HabiJax build homes, worked here in the store, participated in local clean-ups, helped in homeless shelters, etc.
“I try to hold different events about twice a month depending on work schedules. I put the word out and our Sailors show up to volunteer. They are very interested in helping people in our community.”
Galloway has volunteered at the HabiJax ReStore so much that the managers made him a store team lead. “I know what jobs need to be taken care of here and with our Sailors volunteering, we get it done,” he said.
For Aviation Electronics Technician 2nd Class (AW) Jeris Campbell volunteering here is something he takes great pride in.
“I’m working here today to give back to the community. I grew up in Jacksonville so it makes me happy to help uplift my town and help others in need,” he said. “We have been organizing some areas of the store to make it more accessible for customers and cleaning up. We’ve moves shingles and ceramic tiles, unloaded a couple trucks of donated items and filled up an entire dumpster with unusable items and debris.”
The work the team of Sailors completed was definitely appreciated.
“The Navy folks are the best – they help us out tremendously,” said HabiJax ReStore Assistant Manager Mike Calder. “It’s amazing how much work they accomplish. They are extremely dedicated and we really appreciate all their help cleaning up our store today. They are awesome!”
The HabiJax ReStore is a 38,000 sq. ft. home improvement outlet that benefits the organization’s mission of building affordable housing for Jacksonville residents.