{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://web.archive.org/web/20141206052424/http://esty.house.gov/media-center/in-the-news/usda-grant-helps-rebuild-homes-for-litchfield-countys-elderly", "USDA grant helps rebuild homes for Litchfield County's elderly", "2014-12-04", "2014", "2014-12", "Democrat", "House", "CT", "Elizabeth Esty", "E000293", "web.archive.org", null, null, "legacy", "NEW MILFORD -- Ceia Webb has high praise for the U.S. Department of Agriculture for its assistance in meeting the needs of low-income senior citizens in Litchfield\u00a0County.\nWebb is executive director of Rebuilding Together of Litchfield County, and her organization has received a $50,000 Housing Preservation Grant through the USDA to help with its\u00a0outreach.\nThe grant can only be applied to work on homes in the rural areas of Litchfield County and is not available in Watertown and Torrington because the USDA classifies them as\u00a0cities.\n\"We are very thrilled with receiving these funds,\" Webb said Thursday. \"This is a huge benefit to us. The grant is being used for repairing and renovating the homes of older, single-family homes of people 60 and\u00a0over.\"\nRebuilding Together of Litchfield County is based in New Milford. It is an affiliate of Rebuilding Together, a national nonprofit volunteer\u00a0organization.\nIt works to preserve and revitalize low-income homes, focusing on the households of the elderly, disabled and residents in those categories who are supporting young\u00a0children.\nWebb said during the last eight to 10 weeks, her organization has installed a handicap access ramp at the Kent home of an elderly, mentally disabled couple in conjunction with the Kent Community Foundation.\nIt just completed work on a home in South Kent where the roof had been damaged in an ice storm last winter and the chimney needed to be replaced. That homeowner, a woman in her late 60s, is having hip replacement\u00a0surgery.\n\"We knew the funds were coming, so we undertook the projects,\" Webb said. \"We've had local masons and contractors working with us on these projects at reduced\u00a0fees.\"\nThe South Kent home was the 179th house Rebuilding Together of Litchfield County has renovated and/or repaired over the last 10\u00a0years.\n\"With the cold winter upon us, many families and seniors are struggling to make necessary repairs to keep them safe in their homes,\" said U.S. Rep. Elizabeth Esty, D-Conn., who announced the grant award along with Connecticut U.S. Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy.\n\"This grant will go a long way in supporting Rebuilding Together of Litchfield County's mission of building stronger, more resilient communities here in Litchfield County,\" Esty\u00a0added.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://web.archive.org/web/20141206052424/http://esty.house.gov/media-center/in-the-news/usda-grant-helps-rebuild-homes-for-litchfield-countys-elderly"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.7077930495142937, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}