It was a major blow.

The Valley Community Action Programs (CAPS) was in the process of having a new roof put on the Dick Prada Building at North and Main streets where 60-plus consumers with mental handicaps attend day programs on Oct. 5.

That night an unexpected and unseasonable wind and rain storm severely damaged the roofing job as well as much of the contents.

“It was a major disaster,” Valley CAPS Executive Director Paul Rengh recalled. “We had no place for our 60 consumers and eight staff members to go.”

Rengh gave City Manager Karen McLaughlin a call the next day at 7:30 a.m.to see if the city had any possible space they could use.

Within 2.5 hours, city staff was discussing logistics and had an attorney working on an agreement to allow Valley CAPS to temporarily make use of the former Carpenter’s Union Hall at Union Road and Louise Avenue the city had purchased with the intent at one time of converting it into a fire station.

“Within 24 hours we knew we had a place to go,” Rengh said. “It was amazing.”

The city’s quick action was appreciated by Valley CAPS board members as well. Ben Cantu, who serves as board chairman, praised the city for quickly stepping up.

The move also caused minimum financial strain to Valley CAPS. The non-profit - that owned the former True Value Hardware building outright - is using the facility rent free for the next three or so months while repairs are completed. They will pay for utilities. Valley CAPS also paid for some improvements to make the building usable such as replacing broken windows.

The city building maintenance crew also joined in by performing routine maintenance such as work needed to get the heating system in operating order.

“It is truly amazing that we not only found a building but were able to move in within two weeks,” Rengh noted.

The CAPS program started using the city building on Oct. 21.

Besides being able to help a local non-profit, McLaughlin noted the city now has a set of eyes to look out for the municipal property while repairs are made to the North and Main location.

McLaughlin gave all of the credit to her staff. She was en route to jury duty in Modesto when she got the call from Rengh. She immediately called City Clerk Joann Tilton who helped guide the project forward. McLaughlin, who served for 18 months on the CAPS board, kept council members abreast of what was going on.

“The building maintenance guys did a great job stepping up,” McLaughlin. “They’ve been cut back like everyone else but they still came through without missing a beat.”