Volunteers Give Back to Veteran Who Spent Life Helping Community

Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer

It was a project aimed at helping the helper.

More than 25 volunteers, including many from Vets Helping Vets of Anderson and the Anderson Lights of Hope. joined the Home Depot Foundation on Tuesday to honor a local veteran who has spent his life volunteering to help others.

The group worked to take care of some much-needed repairs for the house of U.S. Coast Guard veteran Dennis Lavold, who is now 82. Lavold has been a driving force in volunteering to help others in the community, and as a co-founder of Anderson Lights of Hope (Lavold said he is a “Christmas guy”) has spent countless hours in service to the area.

“It’s the story of the cobbler who needs shoes,” said Anderson Lights of Hope Executive Director Ben Phillips, who has worked alongside Lavold for decades. “It’s time for others to give back to him.”

A grant from the Hope Depot Foundation made the work possible. The organization marks National Volunteer Month in April by partnering with national and local nonprofits to complete dozens of service projects like this one to give back to veterans and local communities across the country.

Volunteers are removing Lavold’s old deck, replacing it with a new one, assembling new patio furniture, replacing interior floors in the house and doing some landscaping.

“I can’t spell thank you big enough,” said Lavold. “My appreciation is not big enough.”