'A little miracle': Dozens of volunteers help launch 'blitz build' project in Johnstown
A few minutes later, Ed, a former Upper Yoder Township resident, and the rest of the crew started 'blitz' building a new home on the 700 block of Somerset Street in Johnstown's Kernville neighborhood.
Construction of the structure is expected to be completed by Thursday, when it will be gifted to Navy veteran Darren Hill through the combined contributions of the Polacek Veteran Home Initiative, Vision Together 2025 and Allegheny County-based Hosanna Industries.
PHOTO GALLERY | Polacek Veteran Home Initiative | Walls and Roof Construction | Somerset Street
'There's excitement,' said Becky Hetzer, director of missional resources for Hosanna Industries, which provides many services, including helping at-need homeowners preserve their properties by doing free repairs.
'There's joy. I know that the homeowner has been waiting for this home for months. It's exciting to be part of something that's bigger than yourself. That's what today is about, because it's about a lot of strangers coming together for one purpose and one goal, and that's to build a house this week.'
Most volunteers were local, but other helpers came from elsewhere in the U.S. There were skilled laborers and people with no construction experience working together.
WATCH VIDEO | Polacek Veteran Home Initiative 'blitz build' begins
The Polacek Veteran Home Initiative 'blitz build' project gets underway with a prayer in Johnstown on Monday, Aug. 18, 2025.
'This is going to be great,' volunteer Stacy Martin said. 'In four days, this house is going to be complete, and we're going to be part of it. It's just an amazing thing that they're doing here for a veteran.'
Martin was among a group of 1st Summit Bank employees who joined in the effort.
'Well, at 1st Summit Bank, we're all a big family there, so we take care of each other, we take care of our community,' Martin said.
Polacek Veteran Home Initiative | Walls and Roof Construction | Somerset Street
Rob Hetzer, volunteer electrician of Slippery Rock, assembles the electrical panel during the Polacek Veteran Home Initiative 'Blitz Build' event on Somerset Street in downtown Johnstown on Monday, August 18, 2025.
Dr. Martin Little, whose father was a colleague of Ed's, came in from Sacramento, California.
'No other institution builds a whole home in four days. … It's a phenomenon,' Little said.
Asheville, North Carolina, resident Anthony Greco, Ed's nephew, was participating in his first Hosanna Industries project.
Polacek Veteran Home Initiative | Walls and Roof Construction | Somerset Street
Local volunteer Jaden Gordon, of Johnstown, cuts shingles during the Polacek Veteran Home Initiative 'Blitz Build' event on Somerset Street in downtown Johnstown on Monday, August 18, 2025.
'It seemed like a really cool experience and a good thing to do. … It won't be the last. This is cool. I'll probably be up again,' Greco said.
The four-day construction project is the culmination of months of preparation work that included a panel of local veterans selecting Hill to receive the home from among numerous applicants.
'The whole concept of it going to a person that not only has been recognized for service to their country, but also recognized for their service and their volunteerism in Johnstown, it's a huge thing,' said retired Army Col. Jeff Pounding, who helped organize the selection process.
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