President Willy Moore shares, “I love to build. I got lucky realizing what I was put on this earth to do. It would be a shallow existence for me if I couldn’t celebrate my success without helping others achieve their own successes.”

Southway Builders does this through supporting nonprofit organizations that advocate for education, assisting those experiencing homelessness, and building workforce skills. In 2018, the Southway Builders Charitable Trust was established to guide our charitable giving efforts. In 2023, the Charitable Trust supported 55 different organizations, including Roca Baltimore, Helping Up Mission, Humanim, and Health Care for the Homeless.  And, this year’s annual golf tournament raised funds to support Thread. All of these efforts and the individual efforts of our team members are an important part of our greater mission of transforming people, communities, and buildings. 

“I have an enormous amount of pride that our company has been able to be in a position to write checks for the good of the community,” said Willy Moore.

In addition to financial donations, our Culture Builders Committee coordinates volunteer opportunities for our employees, such as serving meals at soup kitchens or filling school backpacks with meals. Group volunteer opportunities also include supporting workforce development programs through organizations like Second Chance, Vehicles for Change, and The Loading Dock.  Southway team members also volunteer with and serve on multiple nonprofit boards.

“I wouldn’t be where I am today without the help of a lot of a lot of people,” says Willy Moore. It’s important for me to play a role in helping others. None of us can succeed without the help of others.”

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Check out the full list here!

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In 1999, Vehicles for Change (VFC) opened outside of Baltimore with a vision to empower families with financial challenges to achieve economic and personal independence through car ownership and technical training. Part of their program includes the Full Circle Auto Repair & Training Center at 3419 Greenmount Avenue, which is a prison reentry internship program that trains automotive technicians. The garage operates under the care and supervision of Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) certified master mechanics and Maryland state licensed inspectors and provides basic auto repair, brakes, tune-ups, tires, and oil changes.

VFC technicians are in high demand due to the skills and certifications they obtain through the program as well as their work ethic, passion, and gratitude. Program graduates are quickly offered positions from the region’s largest car dealerships and automotive facilities. While the state and national rates for recidivism (those reentering the criminal justice system) range between 45-70%, the rate is just 3% for VFC and their 20-year program history, signifying great success in a program that supports and trains individuals for success.

Southway proudly supports a variety of workforce development programs throughout the region, including VFC. Our team of volunteers was eager to learn more about ways to help and didn’t hesitate at the challenge of rolling up our sleeves, donning work gloves and dust masks, and breaking out in a full sweat to help clear out a parts loft at the Greenmount location full of outdated parts from the 1970s that were donated along with the garage several years ago. Old radiators and heater cores were unboxed and palletized to recycle the steel and cardboard. Smaller parts that were no longer in need were tossed into a dumpster, while other usable parts were saved. Southway volunteers ranged from the President of the company through summer interns, with all departments and positions represented in between, illustrating our genuine commitment and passion to give back and help others reach their maximum potential. VFC staff worked alongside, including their president and founder.

To learn more about Vehicles for Change and its programs: https://www.vehiclesforchange.org/vehicles-for-change-vision-values/

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Thanks to HCH for the great idea, thanks to the staff at Baba’s for providing the delicious and healthy meals, and thanks to the staff of the Baltimore Station for helping us make it happen.

To learn more about Heath Care for the Homeless click here.

To learn more about The Baltimore Station click here.

To learn more about Baba’s Mediterranean Kitchen click here.

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Second Chance is a nonprofit that deconstructs buildings and homes, salvages usable materials and makes those available to the public through 200,000 square feet of retail space. With the revenue generated, they provide job training and workforce development for those with employment obstacles in the Baltimore region.

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As a construction company, Southway interacts with various subcontractors on different projects every day, but we do not always have the opportunity to get down and dirty like they do. With Habitat for Humanity, we were able to put ourselves into the shoes of those we work alongside.

Everyone from the leadership team to preconstruction team members to project managers came out to build a house in the New-Northwood community of Baltimore. However, creating a home for a family does not happen in just a day; it takes time, effort, perseverance, quality and care. Southway volunteers spent the day cutting wood for framing, installing the framing and working with carpenters on various other projects throughout. Even Rachel, our office manager, got to use an electric saw for the first time!

Habitat not only builds homes in the area but has six ReStores which sell new and used furniture, building materials, appliances and more. It also has a program for workplace development called HabiCorps which gives hands-on instruction in carpentry and construction management to low-income individuals.

For more information on Habitat for Humanity of the Chesapeake and how to volunteer, and how they select Habitat partner families, visit https://www.habitatchesapeake.org/about/ 

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One major event we had was at the Baer School in Baltimore. This Baltimore City Public School has served children with severe disabilities for over 75 years. During Southway’s service day, we engaged in everything from assisting teachers in a variety of classrooms, to helping organize supplies for staff, and building maintenance.It was enlightening to learn that they not only teach the students, but they provide various types of therapy, social work, medical assistance and are a M.O.V.E (Mobility Opportunities Via Education) International Model Site.

Below is a testimonial from Matt Bolyard, one of Southway’s Vice Presidents who volunteers at the Baer school regularly after his first experience:

“My experience at the Baer School started when Southway hosted one of its “sweat equity” give-back events.  I was admittedly a little worried at first; the setting of the school can be pretty overwhelming with the level of disabilities amongst the students.  However, almost immediately, upon meeting some of the students in the classroom that I was assigned, any fear or inhibitions went out the window.  Specifically, two students, Tyshawn and Justin (both wheelchair-bound), took to me right away.  Given how excited they were to meet a new friend, you would have thought I was a long-lost brother or something.  It was just wonderful to hang out with them and help them learn.  What was really great is that I quickly steered away from seeing them as persons with disabilities and just began to see them as any other friend.  Since that visit, I regularly visit the school and have made many more friends along the way in other classrooms, but I ALWAYS make it a point to stop by Justin and Tyshawn’s classroom to say hello (the “long lost brother” response never changes!).”

The connections made with these students have stuck for multiple employees, and we are happy to be a part of helping them grow. For more information on the Baer School and how to volunteer, visit https://www.thebaerschool.org/school/.

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WABC is looking to change that. Associated Builders and Contractors is a national organization. The Baltimore Chapter has a women’s committee, which has been putting on a career day for high school females for the past five years. Southway has been lucky enough to host the event at a job site and participate almost every year. This year we hosted the girls at our John Ruhrah Elementary School job site where we are renovating the school and building an addition as a Joint Venture project with MCN Build.

Various women from the committee and on the job site spoke about being a female in the field. From HR professionals to women who created their own construction business from the ground up, the high school ladies were able to see every facet of the industry and learn about the opportunities they have. They also got a lesson on budget analysis, got to work a 360 camera and see a drone fly around the building.

For the girls, seeing so many women who are successful in the industry was absolutely empowering, especially Stacey Lioreisis who is a project engineer at the John Ruhrah site.

One of the main points of the day is to make the girls aware of ABC’s apprenticeship program. There, men and women are able to shadow professionals in the industry to learn the practical and theoretical sides of various trades with on-the-job training and related classroom instruction. For more information on ABC Baltimore and their apprenticeship program, visit https://www.abcbaltimore.org/apprenticeship/.

We truly hope that through this experience many of these high school girls will consider entering an industry they might not have without exposure through events like this. Thank you to ABC, WABC, the job site team and all of the speakers/presenters for making the day so special for so many women.

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Last Friday, a group of Southway employees volunteered at the Baltimore Hunger Project. They ziplock bundled 450 meals to go home with Baltimore City or Baltimore County students in need as their food for the weekend.

Nearly 84% of Baltimore City Students are considered food insecure, and 48% participate in free or reduced-price meal programs. This means about 123,000 students in our area may struggle with hunger during breaks from school.

Volunteers from BHP will sneak into classes on Fridays and secretly place meals in students’ bags for the weekend. Not only do they provide food, but volunteers draw pictures for each bag to brighten the students day and make them feel special.

BHP is dedicated to strengthening bodies, empowering minds and building communities. Founder Lynne B. Kahn made the point that feeding children is not complex. Starting out, the organization provided meals to 30 kids in two elementary schools, but now it reaches over 450 children in 15 Baltimore schools.

To provide comfort, security and hope for these children is a reward unmatched. Thank you to everyone at the Baltimore Hunger Project for their hard work and allowing us to join them in giving back to the Baltimore community. For more information on the Baltimore Hunger Project and how to volunteer, visit https://www.baltimorehungerproject.org.

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Founded in 1984, The Loading Dock is the nation’s first successful, self-sufficient, nonprofit building materials reuse center, packed with new and used items and architectural salvage. Most of the materials found here are usually sent to a landfill, but The Loading Dock has created a re-production of supplies into the homes of Baltimore.

The Loading Dock serves homeowners, distributers, contractors and many more in the community. Their mission saves money for donors and members alike through saving on dumping/storage fees and providing materials for repairs at lower than retail cost.

Each Year The Loading Dock:

• Saves 421 kitchen cabinet sets , 42 miles of lumber and 1,634 windows.
• Diverts 4,489 doors from the landfill, which if stood end to end, would be taller than 25 Empire State Buildings.
• Could paint the exterior of the White House 85 times with the 26,000 gallons of paint donated.
• Serves over 11,000 homeowners and community groups, who saved over $2 M.
• Assists in the rehabilitation of nearly 15,000 homes.

Thank you to everyone at Southway who came out to volunteer (and sweat) at The Loading Dock last Tuesday! Our team was able to re-palletize several thousand individual bricks, unbox and organize cabinetry and untangle and sort electrical wire for recycling.

A special thank you for those at The Loading Dock who offer services to the community every day and are dedicated to affordable rebuilding in Baltimore. For more information on The Loading Dock and how you can volunteer, visit http://www.loadingdock.org.

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