Individuals Honored During National Volunteer Appreciation Week

Throughout Volunteer Appreciation Week, April 19th-25th, 2026, Rebuild Upstate honors volunteers and entities for their commitment and service.

This post is part two in a two-part series recognizing volunteers for their service. It features awards traditionally given to community leaders and individuals for volunteerism. Read about entities, businesses, and churches here.

 

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Golden Hammer Award

Awarded to Alan Russell

The Golden Hammer is awarded to an outstanding individual volunteer who has volunteered their time on the build site. This individual goes above and beyond to help our operations team complete home repair projects.

Alan’s dedication to Rebuild Upstate remains unwavering for nearly four years. Throughout 2025, he devoted time each month to leading volunteer groups through home repair projects. Alan approaches every assignment with a deep commitment, ensuring he fully understands the project scope and does whatever is necessary to see it through. Beyond his on-site skills, he is an invaluable partner to the CE team, consistently providing detailed homeowner updates, group insights, and lots and lots of photos.

Golden Wrench Award

Awarded to Chris Harrell

The Golden Hammer is awarded to an outstanding individual volunteer who has volunteered their time on the build site. This individual goes above and beyond to help our operations team complete home repair projects.

Chris has been a dedicated member of the Anderson Handyman Club since 2024. In 2025, he spent over 200 hours volunteering around Anderson County. Chris answers the call to action no matter what challenging home repair he’s thrown. He is a vital part of the work being done in Anderson on behalf of Rebuild Upstate and we are so grateful for his commitment to providing safer and more livable homes for our neighbors.

Outstanding Volunteers

Awarded to Tom Fruhwirth

The Outstanding Volunteer award goes to diligent volunteers who show leadership skills and stand out among their peers.

Tom is a standout volunteer whose many years of service have been defined by flexibility, kindness, and a thoughtful approach to every challenge. He works seamlessly with our team and homeowners alike, always taking the time to assess a situation before diving in. We are deeply grateful for his loyalty and the hard work he pours into our mission every day.

Ambassador Award: Community Engagement Volunteer of the Year

Awarded to Chris Simcoe

Awarded to a person or entity we recognize for service above and beyond in sharing our mission with the community

Not many volunteers can say they’ve been around since the beginning, but Chris Simcoe can! He remembers his first volunteer experience being a roof replacement with his Starbucks team back in 2008, just a few years after Rebuild Upstate replaced the first roof ever for another neighbor in need. In 18 years of volunteer service to our organization, Chris’ dedication has shone brightly, making him the perfect Ambassador Awardee. From encouraging volunteer days with his Starbucks team and securing multiple community grants from them for our work, to sharing storage space at his business for our trucks and trailers when we had not enough space of our own, to sharing our application with neighbors who needed it, to serving on our advisory council and eventually official board service – he has brought leadership and influence to all corners of our organization. It is evident that Chris cares about not only Rebuild Upstate, but also the vitality of his community. He wants home to be safer and better for everyone, especially our older adult and low-income neighbors. Chris is a great advocate for these neighbors and for Rebuild Upstate, and we know his tenacity pushes him to foster genuine connections that will advance the our mission of home preservation to all he encounters.

Foundational Supporter Hall of Fame

Awarded to Kylie & Justin Felker

The Foundational Supporters award recognizes individuals who use their time, talents, voice, and/or resources in an “above and beyond” and multi-year effort to advance our mission. This is Rebuild Upstate’s Hall of Fame.

The Foundational Supporter award recognizes individuals who use their time, talents, and resources in an “above and beyond” and multi-year effort to advance our mission. This is Rebuild Upstate’s Hall of Fame. The names we are thrilled to add to our hall of fame tonight is: Kylie & Justin Felker.

Justin and Kylie exemplify serving and giving with purpose. They joined our organization the way so many our of long term advocates do – by volunteering on a build site around 10 years ago. They then created a volunteer group affectionately known as the “Screwdriver Squad” which involved friends, family and coworkers, with a “sprinkling of random strangers” as Justin puts it. These days, their 4 year old Aiden joins them occasionally to supervise!

Loving the long term solutions repairs provide, both Justin & Kylie furthered their dedication to our mission by joining the advisory council, and Justin eventually served on our board of directors from 2020-2025, and as board chair in 2023. They both have connected us to major donors, community leaders, and other avenues of support to raise awareness for our mission and increase our capacity.

Justin & Kylie have also made consistent, substantial financial gifts to our home repair program and recently received naming rights to our very important Tool Room at the new warehouse. We are very grateful for their investment and belief in our program. We thank them for sticking with us and showing up with support whenever it’s needed.

Justin says, “I was drawn to Rebuild Upstate because its mission is simple and deeply human — helping people stay safe and independent in their homes. The impact is immediate, personal, and meaningful.”

Their commitment to community goes beyond our organization. Justin is active with United Way, and Kylie serves as a Board Member for GLDC (Greenville Local Development Corp), The Children’s Museum of the Upstate, The Opportunity Fund, and Opportunity South Carolina.

We feel lucky to know such a caring and invested family.

Young Professional of the Year

Awarded to Mickey Walker

The Young Professional Award is given to a young professional who has given a significant contribution of their time and talents towards our mission.

The Young Professional of the Year award is given to someone who has offered a significant contribution of their time and talents towards our mission. This year, that’s Mickey Walker.
Upon graduating college and moving to a new city, Mickey decided to first set his sights on service. Along with World Relief, Friends of the Reedy River, Triune Mercy Center, and Greenville County Animal Care Services, he has chosen to share his time and talents with Rebuild Upstate. From the first meeting, we could tell that Mickey just really cares about helping others. He lives and breathes service. And he wants to encourage others to do the same.
After encouraging his workplace to volunteer with Rebuild Upstate, then securing funds for the repairs, and then planning an additional build day, Mickey decided to deepen his commitment to our organization with a personal financial sponsorship of a build day – with his family and friends. Not many twenty-somethings choose to spend their Saturdays like this, so we celebrate Mickey as our Young Professional of the Year and can only imagine what more he will accomplish in his career. In just one year serving with RU, Mickey has helped complete 4 accessibility ramps, window replacements, and exterior repairs for several neighbors in need and has helped to establish a long term partnership between World Finance and Rebuild Upstate.

Home Repair Warriors

Home Repair Warriors bring our mission to life. These volunteers may serve in the office, on-site, or as an advocate in the community. Wherever they are, their personal contributions deeply impact the entire upstate community. Earned by volunteering 50+ hours, these volunteers made substantial time contributions last year.

200+ Hours

Chris Harpe (293)
Steve Mears (232)
Chris Harrell (208)

100 – 149 Hours

Jesse Trout (155)
Tom Fruhwirth (133)
Doug Greenwell (113)

To all our recent volunteers, thank you! Our program is stronger because of you.