Maplewood, August 16, 2012 – Doing the Right Thing, Giving Back, and Taking Care of People are three of the eight core tenets expressed on Home Depot's corporate Value Wheel. District and store Managers and staff from all over the St. Louis area put those values into action today at Giant Steps of St. Louis.
Giant Steps is a nonprofit organization that offers specialized school and camp programs for children with autism spectrum disorders. A year ago, Giant Steps moved into the former Concordia Lutheran School building on Sarah Street in downtown Maplewood. The building and grounds needed some restoration, and community outreach groups have pitched in over the past year to build a playground and paint much of the building's interior.
Now “Team Depot” has taken the exterior improvements to a new level by constructing an attractive retaining wall around the school's entrance and front garden. The 13 volunteers also built a picnic table and a raised bed for student gardening projects within the fenced playground. Indoors, they gave the school's library a fresh coat of paint. The Team will return in a few weeks to landscape the front entrance with plants from their stores' inventories.
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Home Depot District Manager Steve Esparza learned about the Giant Steps from Board President Bob Wallace, and Chesterfield Store Manager John Marshal set up the Team Depot outreach project. "We look for projects that match our skill set," Marshall said, "and the opportunity to help children with autism by upgrading their learning environment is a very good fit for us."
Wallace notes, "Giant Steps always wants the best setting for our students, but we have limited funds for building improvements. We are honored that Home Depot has chosen to donate their time, expertise and resources to this important cause."