( CNN ) -- Jeff Parness , a native New Yorker , was inspired by the help his hometown received from other cities in the immediate aftermath of the September 11 attacks . Today , he honors that support through his organization , New York Says Thank You , which sends volunteers to a different community each year to help them rebuild from its own disaster . What started as a small group of volunteers from New York has grown into a nationwide movement of `` paying it forward . '' Since 2004 , more than 7,000 people have participated in the group 's projects . Parness recently spoke with CNN 's Brittany Stahl about the rebuilding project his group is planning for the 10th anniversary of 9/11 . Brittany Stahl : What are your plans for the next project ? Jeff Parness : We 're hoping to rebuild a barn in a small town in Georgia that was destroyed a few weeks ago in a tornado . There 's a very special woman that lives in the barn . Her name is Susan Littlejohn , and she cares for 65 rescue animals in the barn . She and two of her volunteers were feeding all 65 of the animals , and a tornado literally dropped down on the barn and the barn exploded . Luckily , Susan and the volunteers were fine and all the animals were fine . But she lost everything . So this year , we 're going to bring about 300 volunteers from around the country and do a barn-raising in Ellijay , Georgia . Stahl : What is special about this project ? Parness : Susan 's group is called Build An Ark Foundation , and she 's dedicated her life and sacrificed so much for caring for animals and using them as a way to inspire other people and inspire volunteerism . She uses the animals to inspire disabled kids and seniors . Troubled youth volunteer at her stables to care for the animals . There are so many elements to what she does with her Build An Ark Foundation that we realized it 's more than just building a barn , it 's really helping her to make a greater impact on the world and in her community . You ca n't help but be attracted to her sense of faith and her sense of humanity . Stahl : How is rebuilding the barn symbolic for the community ? Parness : Our greatest hope for Susan , aside from rebuilding the barn , is strengthening her ability to sustain Build An Ark Foundation and to continue to care for the animals . I think using the 9/11 anniversary as a backdrop , and using all these survivors from New York and around the country , we 're going to bring so many people together that I think are going to come to know and come to love Susan . Our greatest hope is the relationships we create for her will sustain her long after we 've gone and finished putting the barn back up . Stahl : What can people do if they want to contribute to your upcoming project in July ? Parness : In terms of helping , I think we 're going to be pretty blessed with a lot of volunteers . We always need sponsorship . So if somebody wanted to sponsor one of our New York City firefighters or other first responders to go help rebuild the barn as something positive to do on the 9/11 anniversary , they can go to our website and contribute and we 'd be honored to have their support . Read the full story on CNN Hero Jeff Parness : 'Paying it forward ' after 9/11 .
CNN Hero Jeff Parness started a nonprofit called New York Says Thank You . Every year , the volunteer group helps a community recovering from a disaster . This year 's beneficiary is an animal rescue group in Ellijay , Georgia . Do you know a hero ? Nominations are open for 2011 CNN Heroes .