Habitat for Humanity helps low-income families during first national A Brush with Kindness Week

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Sep 17, 2015, 02:31 ET

ATLANTA, Sept. 17, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Habitat for Humanity is partnering with Valspar, Habitat's national paint partner, and Wells Fargo, to launch the first national A Brush with Kindness Week, Sept. 19-26. A Brush with Kindness Week is a nationwide effort to transform neighborhoods by painting, landscaping and providing minor exterior home repairs in partnership with low-income homeowners, many of whom are elderly or have a disability. The national event will bring together more than 2,000 volunteers to help more than 150 families in 24 states.

"Habitat's home preservation work focuses on affordable housing in existing communities and often helps homeowners continue to live independently and securely in their homes," said Jonathan Reckford, CEO of Habitat for Humanity International. "We are grateful for the commitments of the volunteers and sponsors that make such a difference in the lives of families across the country."

Habitat relies on volunteers, donated materials and affordable loans to make repairs, helping low-income homeowners maintain and remain in their houses. Habitat has served nearly 13,000 low-income families through exterior home preservation services between 2008 and 2014.

Valspar, lead sponsor of Habitat's A Brush with Kindness Week, is the founding partner of A Brush with Kindness program, part of Habitat's home preservation services which help low-income homeowners who struggle to maintain the exterior of their homes. Valspar has donated more than 2.2 million gallons of paint to Habitat through 2014 and pledged $36 million in financial and paint contributions through 2019.

A supporter of Habitat's inaugural A Brush with Kindness Week, Wells Fargo has donated more than $40 million to Habitat for Humanity International and affiliates combined in the past five years through the company's Wells Fargo Housing Foundation commitment to support affordable and sustainable housing.

In recognition of this first national effort, volunteers from Valspar, Wells Fargo and Habitat for Humanity Twin Cities are launching the event on Sept. 19 in St. Paul, Minnesota, by painting and raising a massive banner of the United States. With a Habitat home as the backdrop, volunteers will use 153 gallons of Valspar-provided paint representing the 153 Habitat homeowner families participating in the national event. In addition, volunteers will complete 10 projects in partnership with low-income families in St. Paul.

For more information about Habitat for Humanity's home preservation program, please visit Habitat.org.

About Habitat for Humanity International
Habitat for Humanity International's vision is a world where everyone has a decent place to live. Anchored by the conviction that housing provides a path out of poverty, since 1976 Habitat has helped more than 5 million people through home construction, rehabilitation and repairs and by increasing access to improved shelter through products and services. Habitat also advocates to improve access to decent and affordable shelter and offers a variety of housing support services that enable families with limited means to make needed improvements on their homes as their time and resources allow. As a nonprofit Christian housing organization, Habitat works in more than 70 countries and welcomes people of all races, religions and nationalities to partner in its mission. To learn more, donate or volunteer, visit habitat.org.

About Valspar
Valspar is a global leader in the coatings industry providing customers with innovative, high-quality products and value-added services. Our 10,800 employees worldwide deliver advanced coatings solutions with best-in-class appearance, performance, protection and sustainability to customers in more than 100 countries. Valspar offers a broad range of superior coatings products for the consumer market, and highly-engineered solutions for the construction, industrial, packaging and transportation markets. Founded in 1806, Valspar is headquartered in Minneapolis. Valspar's reported net sales in fiscal 2014 were $4.5 billion and its shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange (symbol: VAL). For more information, visit www.valspar.com and follow @valspar on Twitter.

About Wells Fargo
Among the largest provider of volunteers to Habitat for Humanity, Wells Fargo is a supporter of the inaugural A Brush with Kindness effort. In 2014, the Wells Fargo Housing Foundation donated nearly $20 million in support of affordable housing initiatives serving low-and moderate-income households – including for seniors, veterans, and families – sustainable housing and community revitalization efforts. Since its inception in 1993, the Wells Fargo Housing Foundation has invested more than $150 million to such efforts, along with mobilizing more than 4.6 million team member volunteer hours to build and rehabilitate more than 5,500 homes and counting.

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SOURCE Habitat for Humanity International