Volunteers pitch in to transform Leesburg's former Big Bass Motel into home for needy families

First Baptist Church of Leesburg bought the Big Bass Motel, at 108 N. 14th St., in September after months of planning for $550,000. With donations from local churches and individual and corporate donors, as well as a state contribution, the old motel was gutted and transformed into a cozy home.

"With the economy, you've got a lot of people doing the right things and trying, but they're coming up short," said Chester Wood, director for First Baptist's Christian Care Center. "We want to help them become employable, get into their own homes and keep their families together."

Lake County's unemployment rate is 11.9 percent, and an estimated 1,750 of the county's students are homeless. Families will be able to stay at the inn for three months or more while they develop plans to find jobs and homes. Once complete, the Samaritan Inn will add a place for children to the Christian Care Center's Ministry Village, which currently offers residences for men and women.

Volunteers braved biting cold early this year, and now they are fending off the blazing sun with visors, sunglasses and airy clothing. Starting at 7 a.m. Tuesday to try to beat the heat, volunteers slathered neutral-colored paint on walls, door frames and ceilings with brushes and long-handled rollers.

Everything but the outer walls and floors needed extensive work, Wood said. The plumbing was bad, and the old motel needed a new roof and repairs to the wiring and interior walls.

Each of the nine rooms in the southern wing of the inn, which will be completed first, will have a private bathroom, closet and living area with tough terrazzo-tile flooring, air conditioners, cable television and energy-efficient, hurricane-resistant windows. The site also will have computers available for job searching.

Volunteer Larry Eidelberg, 73, of The Villages said he knows what it's like to be homeless with children. He said there wasn't a place like the Samaritan Inn when he needed help.

"It's bad times," Eidelberg said. "Family-oriented people are living under bridges."

Eidelberg, who attends Temple Shalom near The Villages, said the volunteers are banding together despite different faiths and backgrounds.

"I'm learning a lot here," he said, "We sit and talk, and we find that we're all just about the same."

Judy Switzer, also of The Villages, said she saw the call for volunteers in her bulletin at St. Timothy Catholic Church in Lady Lake and has been helping with the project since its beginning.

"I always see homeless people on the street and thought there should be something you could do about it," said Switzer, 73. "When I saw the notice, I thought, 'Here's my chance.'"

Switzer also remarked on the diversity of the volunteers.

"It's brought so many churches together," she said. "We're all uniting for the same cause."

A yard sale to raise money will be take place on site Saturday, and a grand opening and celebration of volunteers is planned at 10 a.m. June 19.

Those who want to donate to the project can visit samaritan-inn.org or call 352-787-1005. To volunteer, e-mailchesterwood@fbcleesburg.org.