More Than a Makeover: How VIBE Helps Create a Foundation for a Better Life

A safe, comfortable and welcoming home can change the way a family experiences everyday life. It can bring renewed pride, reduce daily burdens and create an environment where both children and adults have a better opportunity to thrive.

VIBE Home Makeovers are designed with that larger purpose in mind. Each makeover begins with the recipient family’s individual story, needs and home. Experienced project leaders, design professionals, community partners, sponsors and employee volunteers then work together to create improvements that are attractive, meaningful, and practical.

VIBE will produce our inaugural 2027 projects, incorporating two different and separate models in Tampa Bay—the SELECT Makeovers and the FLAGSHIP Renovation. Every project is individually planned, so the final result will depend on various factors--the condition of the home, the existing footprint, the family’s needs, the renewed design, available materials, partner contributions, and project resources. Applicants should view the descriptions below as a helpful picture of what may be possible.

SELECT Makeovers: A Thoughtful Renewal of the Home

A VIBE SELECT Makeover focuses on highly visible and useful improvements that can make a home feel fresher, more comfortable and better suited to the family living there. The goal is meaningful change - not simply adding items but addressing the areas where improvements can have the greatest everyday impact.

A SELECT recipient will receive three Core improvements—exterior painting, landscaping and interior painting—along with three Select enhancements involving furniture and bedding, technology and connectivity, and upgraded household appliances. Twelve categories of Finishing Touches will also be incorporated to create a coordinated, comfortable and personal home.

CORE IMPROVEMENTS.

The exterior renewal begins with professionally-led volunteers preparing and painting. This can include the main exterior surfaces, important trim, the front door, shutters, porch features and the garage door. A coordinated color palette helps give the home a clean, unified appearance, while manageable design choices allow volunteer teams to participate in creating a strong transformation.

Landscaping is another important part of the SELECT Makeover experience. Overgrown or tired areas will be cleaned up, trimmed, and reshaped. Fresh mulch, Florida-friendly plants, seasonal color, ornamental grasses, shrubs or modest accent trees may be added to create a warmer welcome. When appropriate, the plan may also include targeted sod repair, decorative planters, solar lighting, stone accents or minor irrigation-head repairs. Pressure washing and crisp bed edging can help bring the entire exterior together.

Inside the home, painting generally centers on the spaces the family uses and sees most, such as the living or family room, dining area, kitchen and main hallways. Bedrooms are included when the home’s size, condition and makeover plan allow. Selected trim, doors or accent walls can further brighten the interior and give the refreshed spaces a comfortable sense of continuity.

SELECT ENHANCEMENTS.

A SELECT Makeover will also address upgraded furnishings. Living-room seating, tables, dining furniture, bedroom furniture, mattresses and bedding will be provided based on the family’s needs. Existing furniture and family treasures are also incorporated into the design, so the completed home still feels familiar and personal.

Technology and connectivity upgrades help family members communicate, work and learn. Items can include computers, tablets, cell phones, televisions, printers, monitors and connectivity equipment. For families with children, special consideration may be given to technology that supports homework, school communication, research and access to educational resources. The emphasis is on dependable, useful technology that can continue benefiting the household after the makeover is complete.

Upgraded appliances are included as well. A refrigerator, range, dishwasher, microwave, washer and dryer could be included when the existing equipment is unreliable, inefficient or no longer serviceable. Products are selected according to the family’s genuine needs, the available space and the home’s existing hookups.

FINISHING TOUCHES.

Finally, carefully selected finishing touches help make the renewed spaces feel complete. Artwork and décor, mirrors, shelving, organization, lamps, clocks, vases, plants, rugs, linens, pillows, and meaningful family treasures all become part of a coordinated design.

The intention is not to make the home look staged, but to create rooms that feel warm, functional and unmistakably connected to the family.

SUMMARY

Together, the full program includes 18 improvements with a total estimated retail value of $30,000.

A Home That Still Feels Like Yours

Every VIBE Home Makeover is grounded in safety, reliability, dignity, pride, opportunity and well-being. Applicants are encouraged to share honestly what is and is not working in their homes, how their families use each space and which improvements could make the greatest difference.

While partner participation, resources and product availability help determine the final scope, the heart of every VIBE project remains the same: bringing people together to create a home that supports a better daily life—and a transformation the recipient family can proudly call its own.

Funding for VIBE Home Makeovers is provided by project partners, who contribute financial resources, home-related products, professional installation, and employee volunteer support.

Trilogy Agency is the developer and manager of the VIBE Home Makeover project. For information about becoming a Partner, email Trilogy Agency (info@trilogy-agency.com).

For additional information about nominations, please visit our website www.VibeHomeMakeover.com.

NEXT UP: FLAGSHIP Renovations

Barbara A. Zotara

Senior Managing Director

VIBE Home Makeover