SACO, Maine (NEWS CENTER)-- One man. One roof. One mission: to not come down until he raises $35,000 for STRIVE.
Kevin Fitzpatrick is the man behind Kevin On The Roof, a fundraiser where he camps out on the roof of Patriot Subaru in Saco until he raises a fundraising goal for the STRIVE program, which is a division of PSL Services and helps teens, tweens, and young adults in the local area with intellectual and emotional disabilities develop the skills they need to become more independent.
Fitzpatrick became hooked on helping out at the program, the building of which sits right across the parking lot from his employer UPS in South Portland, when he followed his daughter to a different fundraiser six years ago.
This is the fifth year of the Kevin On The Roof fundraiser. According to Associate Director Pete Brown, STRIVE has a more than $300,000 gap to fill in its annual budget, and Fitzpatrick's efforts are a great help.
But for Fitzpatrick, being involved in a cause he truly cares about is about so much more than the attention.
"I'm a proud 30 year UPSer, and I'm proud of what we do. But I don't get to go home at night and say 'hey I helped this individual learn independent living skills,'" he says. "Through efforts like this, I do get to say I'm a little bit, I'm a little part of what they do every day."
Kevin On The Roof officially starts Wednesday at 2pm. If you would like to donate, you can visit Fitzpatrick directly at Patriot Subaru on Portland Road in Saco, or you can also visit helpkevinhelpstrive.org, or text "KEVIN" to 71777.