SHARON, Pa. (WKBN) – Help is being provided to the displaced residents of the State Towers apartments in Sharon thanks to a $10,000 grant.

The 35 tenants of the apartment complex on E. State Street were forced to leave their homes after the building was declared unliveable last month. Earlier this month, property manager Joe Fusco pleaded guilty to eight code violations and was ordered to pay $3,200 in fines.

Following the developments, a number of local organizations mobilized to address the growing needs of the displaced residents.

The Shenango Valley Foundation, an affiliate of the Community Foundation of Western Pennsylvania and Eastern Ohio granted $10,000 to the Community Action Partnership of Mercer County to benefit those residents.

The grant money will allow CAP to provide welcome home kits to residents settling into new housing. According to the Community Foundation, many people were unable to take most of their personal belongings with them into their new homes.

The welcome home kits include many items such as new bedding, silverware, a microwave, cookware, a vacuum and cleaning supplies, to name a few.

The Park Inn by Radisson in West Middlesex provided temporary housing for the residents, and the Shenango Valley Urban League and the City of Sharon have been assisting them to secure long-term housing and rental assistance in the meantime.

“It speaks volumes about our community, that when a crisis surfaces that affects our neighbors, people and organizations alike pull together to meet the needs created by the crisis. We are blessed to live in such a community,” said Karen Winner-Sed, president of the Community Foundation of Western Pennsylvania and Eastern Ohio. “It is deeply meaningful to me, personally, to be able to volunteer with a few of the organizations who were instrumental in getting this done.”