Surly brews up needed home repair services in Brooklyn Center

The volunteer crew was anything but ‘Surly’ at this home repair project in Brooklyn Center last week, where fans of the local brewing company painted and completed repairs alongside homeowner partner Sherry. 

“They’ve had 25 people every day; they’re bringing in some seriously good numbers,” said A Brush with Kindness Intern Jeff Vogel. Supporters of  Surly Brewing Co. spent the week removing lead paint around the home’s windows, priming and painting the home, fixing a fence in the backyard and patching a hole in the garage floor. 

“They’ve made great progress in the time they’ve been here,” added Vogel, who supervised the project along with Intern Ben Carlson and Seasonal ABWK Supervisor Bekah Marty.

Homeowner Sherry has lived in her 65th Avenue home for 10 years and is now living with her three children and five-year-old grandson. She and her son worked alongside volunteers to complete repairs she’s struggled to afford for about seven years. 

“It’s worth the wait,” said Sherry, who found out about Habitat’s A Brush with Kindness home repair services when her neighbor partnered with the program. “I want to thank everybody for all the help.” 

Volunteers sporting black Surly Gives a Damn T-Shirts were rewarded for their work with a happy hour at the brewery on Friday night. 

“This is the biggest project we’ve ever done,” said Surly Gives a Damn Coordinator Mary Sellke, who stopped by the worksite to help, along with brewery owner Omar Ansarie. “It’s been fun to get this many people together,” she added. 

The Surly community giving program began about two years ago, when the Brooklyn Center brewery decided to harness the volunteer power at its own events for other community service projects.