Rockhill Furnace, Pa. – The Home Depot Foundation contributed $15,000 to assist in the unprecedented restoration effort currently underway to bring the East Broad Top Railroad (EBT) back to life. The grant will assist the non-profit EBT Foundation, the new owner of the National Historic Landmark, in enhancing the visitor experience with benches and trashcans, as well as purchasing modern power-tools for use in building rehabilitation and track work.

“After having volunteered for the railroad and seeing the need for an upgrade to their tools and equipment, I was proud to connect the dots with The Home Depot Foundation who made this grant available,” Justin Santichen, Operations Store Manager of Home Depot’s Johnstown, Pa. location, and Friends of the East Broad Top member, said.

The Home Depot Foundation works to improve the homes and lives of U.S. veterans, train skilled tradespeople to fill the labor gap and support communities impacted by natural disasters. Since 2011, The Home Depot Foundation has invested more than $400M in veteran causes and improved more than 50,000 veteran homes and facilities. Their foundation has also pledged to invest half of a billion dollars in veteran causes by 2025 and $50 million in training the next generation of skilled tradespeople through the Path to Pro program.
The restoration effort of the East Broad Top Railroad has been made possible by the dedication of tradesmen and countless hours of volunteer labor. This includes bringing a steam locomotive built in 1916 back to operation, stabilizing wood buildings that house a belt-driven machine shop, miles of track
rehabilitation and more.