Buffalo, NY - May 30, 2008 - Brush Up Buffalo, a not-for-profit, all-volunteer organization focused on revitalizing City of Buffalo neighborhoods, needs 250 additional volunteers for its annual event on Saturday, June 14. The organization would like to paint 15 homes for low-income homeowners in the Lovejoy neighborhood.

Registration takes one minute to do online at www.brushupbuffalo.org. Painters must be 18 years of age or older. The preferred registration deadline is Tuesday, June 3, but Brush Up Buffalo will accept volunteer registrations up to the day of the event. Volunteer teams are asked to meet at the Central Terminal by 7:15 a.m. on the day of the event. Individual painters may arrive by 8:15 a.m.

In addition to the satisfaction of helping fellow Buffalonians, each volunteer will receive a t-shirt, work supplies if needed, breakfast, round-trip shuttling from the Central Terminal to the Lovejoy neighborhood, snacks and beverages on site and lunch from Chiavetta's Catering.

Entire volunteer teams are encouraged to register, and teams with 30 or more may have an entire house to paint. Individuals, however, are also welcome, and no painting experience is necessary to participate. Smaller teams and individuals will be paired so that 30 to 40 people will be at every home.

Roseann Scibilia, president of Brush Up Buffalo, said that the number of houses painted is incumbent on the number of volunteers.

"If more people register, we can paint more houses," Scibilia said. "We know June 14 is an event-filled day in Buffalo; but fortunately, Brush Up Buffalo only lasts the morning. When 30 to 40 people are on a house, the scraping and single coat of paint only takes about three to four hours to complete."

This year's event takes place Saturday, June 14, in the Lovejoy neighborhood, in the area bounded by Bailey Avenue, William Street and Ogden Street. LPCiminelli, the company overseeing reconstruction of the nearby P.S. #43 Lovejoy Discovery School, is a key sponsor and will provide $ 8,500 and logistical support. Other premier sponsors include The Margaret L. Wendt Foundation, Bank of America, M&T Bank, Damon & Morey, Harter Secrest & Emery LLP, Malcolm Pirnie and UPS. Their generous donations cover the cost of paint, supplies, insurance and food.

Additional in-kind donors to date for Brush Up Buffalo 2008 include Painting and Decorating Decorators of Western New York, Sherwin-Williams, Sodexho, Sound Video Solutions, Darling Paint, 360 Professional Services Group, Buffalo Business First, Buffalo State College, clevermethod, Full Circle Studios and Kensington-Bailey Neighborhood Housing Services.

Since its inception in 1996, Brush Up Buffalo volunteers revitalized 11 neighborhoods in the City of Buffalo, painting more than 220 homes. Last year, in approximately five hours, more than 600 volunteers painted 12 large homes in Buffalo's West Side along Plymouth Avenue and Hudson Street. For more information, visit www.brushupbuffalo.org or call (716) 250-3353.