Sweet 16 for Rebuilding Together's NFL-Sanctioned 'Kickoff to Rebuild'

Annual Super Bowl Charity Event Gathers 1000, including: Volunteers, NFL Players, Celebrities and Community Members to Revitalize Neighborhood and Assist Elementary School

WASHINGTON, Jan. 24, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Rebuilding Together, the nation's leading nonprofit working to preserve affordable homeownership, announced plans for its 16th Annual Kickoff to Rebuild Event.  Kickoff to Rebuild occurs annually in the host city of the Super Bowl and serves as a high-impact event that engages members of the NFL community to assist low-income neighborhoods. The event unites hundreds of volunteers with NFL players and alumni, cheerleaders, local leadership, and other celebrities to rebuild homes, provide community clean up and restorative services.

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On February 3rd one neighborhood in Arlington, Texas, will receive revitalization services which generate impact lasting long after game day. Work includes rebuild projects for 12 homes with critical needs, an entire neighborhood clean-up, landscaping, and door-to-door repair teams serving as many as 40 low-income homeowners. In addition to the home and neighborhood projects, the adjacent Speer Elementary School, where many of the children in the community attend, will receive a new playground.

HGTV's Carter Oosterhouse, host of Carter Can, in association with his foundation Carter's Kids, and the Lowe's Charitable and Educational Foundation, will build the playground for the students of Speer Elementary School. Additionally, Chris Grundy of DIY Network will join the Kickoff to Rebuild event as another rebuilding expert and well-known television host of Cool Tools and DIY Dominator. Speer Elementary Principal Linda De Leon talked about how much her community deserves this attention. "A lot of our families are struggling to make ends meet, so the last thing you're going to budget for are home improvements," she said. "So for Rebuilding Together to come in and offer to renovate these homes and rebuild them ... it sends a message that there are people still out there who care."

A team of NFL Alumni from the NFL Player Care Foundation are expected to volunteer their efforts during the day, including Rebuilding Together longtime supporters Bill Gramatica and Martin Gramatica.  Also attending are Rebuilding Together's media partner HGTV and DIY Network; radio hosts and partner, On the House with the Carey Brothers; and local leaders and community members.

To wrap up the entire event, Rebuilding Together along with its Dallas chapter Rebuilding Together Greater Dallas will host a community celebration event that focuses on the future of a preserved neighborhood. The mass-volunteer effort begins at 8:00am, with the neighborhood ribbon-cutting scheduled for 1:00pm and the community celebration open to the community at 11:00am.

The 16th annual Kickoff to Rebuild Sponsors include: Atmos Energy, Bridgestone and Firestone Complete Auto Care, Brown Foundation, CB Richard Ellis (CBRE), Freddie Mac, Kmart, Lowe's, National Roofing Contractors Association (NRCA), NFL Player Cares Foundation, and Wells Fargo.

ABOUT REBUILDING TOGETHER Rebuilding Together is the nation's leading nonprofit organization working to preserve affordable homeownership and revitalize neighborhoods by providing extensive rehabilitation and modification services to those in need at no cost to those served. With the help of everyday citizen volunteers, skilled trades people, the support of local business and major corporate partners, Rebuilding Together affiliates in America's largest cities and smallest towns make life considerably better for thousands of low-income homeowners and the communities in which they live by completing 10,000 projects per year. Rebuilding Together has programs dedicated to, energy efficiency, veteran's housing, aging in place and gulf coast reconstruction. For more information, visit www.RebuildingTogether.org.  You can also follow Rebuilding Together on Twitter @rebldgtogthr or become a fan on Facebook at Facebook.com/RebuildingTogether.

SOURCE Rebuilding Together