A third-generation Black family-owned plumbing business in Atlanta, GA, is making a difference by renovating outdated water heating facilities at a local homeless shelter.

Head’s Plumbing, which has been in operation for over 40 years, is giving back to the community by providing Nicholas House residents with on-demand hot water, according to the Marietta Daily Journal.

The family-owned business researched local organizations in Fulton County and saw the shelter as a way to broaden its support by assisting many families in need at once.

“We were presented with an opportunity to do this through our vendor partner ServiceTitan,” Head’s Plumbing CEO Khadija Head told MDJ. “So I sat down with my brother Odari and told him that I didn’t want to do a single-family home — I wanted to do something that would touch a lot of people. The core of our culture, our community, and our future is a true family dynamic.”

The three-story facility will have a separate tankless water heater installed on each floor to enhance the water system’s efficiency as well as filters to prevent waste buildup and eliminate the need for an annual flush, a requirement for many other water heaters.

Head expressed hope that her family’s company will encourage the community to see the plumbing profession in a positive light and that more people in the Black community will pursue the trade as a stable income.

“My wish is that there’s a future technician in here — a child who never knew what they wanted to be when they grow up — who will have this impression in their mind: ‘Maybe I can be a plumber,'” Head said, referencing Nicholas House. “I want them to say, ‘I saw a plumber’ — whether they know what a plumber is or not — ‘I saw someone come in and fix something that was broken.’ I want to be able to have that influence.”

According to the career resource platform Zippia, Black people comprise approximately 9.5% of plumbers in the United States, while white individuals represent the largest ethnic group in the profession with 63.2%.

Head’s company is not the only organization in Atlanta working to support people experiencing homelessness.

Flowing with Blessings Inc. is a nonprofit founded by Nicky Crawford in February 2022 that provides essential services, such as showers and clean clothing, to Atlanta’s homeless population. The nonprofit previously collaborated with industrial design students from Georgia Institute of Technology to develop an innovative Mobile Laundry Bus, AFROTECH™ previously reported.

The inspiration behind the mobile laundry bus was Crawford’s commitment to easing daily struggles by helping people preserve their cherished belongings and maintain personal hygiene without the stigma often associated with homelessness.

“We urge everyone to be the change they wish to see in the world,” Crawford said, per AFROTECH™.

Figures from the 2024 PIT Count reported that about 2,900 people are experiencing homelessness in Atlanta, with an estimated 1,827 people in emergency shelters or transitional housing while approximately 1,040 are unsheltered, according to Atlanta Mission.