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On Saturday, University Park Town Councilman Mickey Lucas will help to turn back the clock to a time when there was a stronger sense of community in the county at the Heat's On – Water's Off Work Day.

Heat's On–Water's Off is a program run by the Steamfitters Local 602, in conjunction with the Mechanical Contractors Association of Metropolitan Washington and the Plumbers Local 5.

Saturday was the 10th annual Work Day, an event that stemmed from the Cause Program, which was a steamfitters public relations campaign started by Lucas in the 1990s. Lucas, who retired in 2000 after 50 years as a steamfitter, has been participating in the program since it began.

"It was to let everybody know who we are and what we got," he said. "We had the best contractors and the best workers, but we were the best kept secret."

About 250 workers from these groups went to 30 houses of county residents who cannot afford to maintain their plumbing, heating, air conditioning and furnaces and performed repairs for free.

Residents eligible for repairs are identified by the county's fire department and the county's Department of Aging.

"I'm so proud of it," Lucas said. "I'll always go back as long as I live. It's bringing back a piece of the old days where everyone knew each other. It's creating togetherness."

Lucas no longer goes to the houses to do hands-on work, but is on hand to offer his steamfitting expertise to workers.

"When you're 75 years old, you're limited," Lucas said. "But, I go over there just to let them know that I'm aware of what they're doing."

Lucas was on hand as the workers met at the Steamfitters' trade school in Landover in the morning as well as when they returned from their respective jobs.

State Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Dist. 27) of Chesapeake Beach and Del. Joseph Vallario Jr. (D-Dist. 27A) of Upper Marlboro were also there to show their support for the program.

Workers repaired and replaced everything from faulty pipes and leaky faucets to hot water heaters or boilers.

Suitland resident Katherine Gray has had repairs made by Heat's On–Water's Off for the last two years and said she is pleased by the quality of the work. Over the two years she has had a broken toilet fixed, leaks in the bathroom repaired, a new furnace installed faulty pipes replaced and her hot water heater repaired.

"It made me feel good because in the past I've had to pay and did not get as good service," she said. "They get people that really care about the seniors."

Gray, 71, said she was impressed with how thorough the workers were.

"They go from room to room to see if I had any other problems that I didn't know about," she said. "They did a complete job."

Wayne Updike, assistant business manager at Steamfitters 602, said the program is a great way to give back to the community.

"We have a lot of members who live in Prince George's County," he said. "People don't realize that other people are living these conditions right down the street."

Lucas said seeing the workers dedicate their time to helping the poor makes him proud to be involved and said he will continue to attend and help in any way possible.

"To go into that room and see that it packed with people waiting for assignments in different areas in Prince George's County is just overwhelming," he said.

E-mail Jonah Schuman at jschuman@gazette.net.