Rebuilding Together Kent County - Chestertown, MD

Location: Chestertown, MD.

We are the 262nd local affiliate of Rebuilding Together, the nation’s largest volunteer home repair and rehabiliation organization. Our all-volunteer Board of Directors comes from all walks of life.  We are recognized by the IRS as a 501[c][3] non-profit and by the State of Maryland as a tax-exempt charitable organization.

We bring neighbors together to repair homes and revitalize communities, preserving homeownership, strengthening families and helping sustain the historical richness and intergenerational legacies that make Kent County a special place to live.

We repair and rehabilitate the houses of low-income homeowners who are elderly and/or disabled and/or families with children, at no cost to the homeowner, by combining gifts of money, donated materials and supplies, and countless hours of skilled and unskilled volunteer labor. To the extent that they are physically able, the homeowner, along with his/her family members, friends and neighbors, are encouraged to work alongside our volunteers. Since September 2004, RTKCMD has completed projects at more than 20 homes in Edesville, Golts, Butlertown, Galena, Rock Hall, Chestertown, Chesterville and Worton.

Our volunteers have donated over 7000 hours, with a market value of more than $170,000, to demolish and rebuild a kitchen addition; reconstruct a front porch; repair plumbing, floors, roofs and electrical wiring; install windows and doors; make accessibility improvements, including widening doorways; construct ramps; and gut and reconstruct a bathroom, including replacing a tub with a shower for improved accessibility. They’re just getting started! Our House Qualification & Homeowner Relations Committee consistently has approximately 12 referrals in various stages of assessment. 

Our referrals come from County and State agencies such as the Departments of Housing & Community Development and Social Services, town officials, churches, neighbors and family members, RTKCMD Board members, and directly from low-income homeowners.

Community partners for our projects  have included Mercantile Eastern Shore Bank, Chestertown Rotary Club, Kent Youth, Washington College, Galena United Methodist Youth Group, Presbyterian Church of Chestertown (which also provides us with meeting and event space), BB&T Bank of Millington, Peoples Bank, Chester River Friends Meeting, United Way of Kent County, and the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of the Chester River.

Financial and material support for our affiliate comes from individuals, community organizations, and area businesses, including Chestertown Lumber, Rock Hall Lumber, Mercantile Eastern Shore Bank, Centreville National Bank, and Peoples Bank of Kent County, and grants from Speer Trust, Maryland Affordable Housing Trust, Mid-Shore Community Foundation, and Merriewold Trust.  We receive no state or federal funding.

We believe every person should have a safe, warm and dry home.