Melanie Clabaugh, then-Executive Director of the KADC, began KARE for Kane. She explained that she found the community “incredibly welcoming” when she moved to the area. One of the individuals who was most welcoming, Jim Salvamoser, was part of the inspiration for KARE for Kane.

Salvamoser served on the Kane Area Industrial Development Corporation Board, and spent over a decade as a member of Kane Borough Council.

“The thing about Jim that was so cool, is that if Jim saw that there was a project in the community that needed to be done, he didn’t wait, he wouldn’t ask other people to do it,” Clabaugh said during an interview for the “100 Days of Kane.”

She went on to explain, “He would go out, get the resources he needed and complete the project. It wasn’t rare to find Jim out at the Welcome to Kane signs landscaping or painting, connecting people to projects. I thought that was really cool that someone had the gumption to go out and complete projects for the community. Jim was a special guy, we had a great relationship. I was lucky to know him.”

Salvamoser passed away in 2011. However, his talent for seeing what needed done and ensuring it was completed, along with Clabaugh’s personal experience with the United Way Day of Caring in Pittsburgh, combined for KARE.

Clabaugh explained that the event in Pittsburgh showed her the benefits of bringing coworkers together outside of the workplace to complete something for the good of the community.

The event maintains the initial intention, adjusting details as necessary, Mayor Brandy Schimp explained.