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One Home at a TimeHabitat of Saint Joseph County / Habitat International
Habitat for Humanity is both an international and local organization. Internationally, Habitat for Humanity builds homes for families all over the world. One example of this, from www.Habitat.org, is that the organization is heavily involved in earthquake relief in Pakistan, and is working to raise over $1 million to begin reconstruction for Pakistani families.
Local Habitat affiliates, like the Habitat for Humanity of Saint Joseph County, operate their organization in line with the principles of Habitat International, while working to develop funding for their local projects. In fact, in recent years, the Habitat affiliate in Saint Joseph County has built 6-10 houses per year. Dueringer, says he would like to do even more in 2006. “Our goal is to eradicate substandard housing in this county. Our partner families are in a large group one might call the ‘working poor.’ They earn less that 50% of the median family income in the county, but with a minimum income of $14,000. My heart goes out to those families. They are hard working people, as deserving as anyone of a simple decent house. Yet their income levels keep their dream of home ownership always just out of reach, which perpetuates the cycle of poverty. For many, our business model at Habitat is the only legitimate chance.” continued
For those who are involved with Habitat, personal transformation is inevitable. Dueringer recalls one Habitat build where a neighbor noticed that volunteers were having difficulty with a broken roof-nailing tool. The neighbor offered his tool to replace the broken one, and the volunteers restarted their work. From his yard next door, the neighbor watched as the volunteers completed their tasks that day. The very next morning the neighbor told volunteers that he was a professional roofer, and that he would be happy to help them complete their roof work. Says Dueringer, “The neighbor understood the importance that home would have on the Habitat family, and welcomed the family by lending a helping hand. That’s the kind of community Habitat wants to build.”
And Habitat of Saint Joseph County finds ways to build community across state lines when disaster strikes. One local man, Gene Winters, recently experienced the depth of Habitat’s commitment to building better lives for the families Habitat serves.
Winters worked with Habitat to help build a home for his wife’s parents, and when Winters’ mother recently lost her Texas home to Hurricane Rita, Habitat of Saint Joseph County stepped in to help. This local Habitat affiliate offered its expertise in partnership with the local Texas Habitat supporters to rebuild Winters’ mother’s home. This is just one more example of how deeply Habitat cares about the families and communities it serves.
Restoring Lives
Another way Habitat of Saint Joseph County is rebuilding lives is through its new retail outlet called ReStore. Located at 932 E. McKinley Avenue in Mishawaka, across from Big C Lumber, ReStore offers quality building materials at prices that are significantly lower than traditional home improvement retailers. Local businesses and consumers donate these tax-deductible materials, and all profits from ReStore sales are directly invested in building homes. Local consumers and Habitat families alike benefit from this lower cost options for home improvement and maintenance. According to Habitat, “ReStore strives to build partnerships within the local community to strengthen families and neighborhoods in the process.”
The original Habitat ReStore began as a warehouse location in Austin, Texas designed to house building supplies for its affiliates until the materials were needed for a building project. Today, consumers can often find high-quality cabinets, carpet, flooring, electrical fixtures, antique doors and restoration items, masonry supplies, furniture, windows, and even appliances at ReStore in Mishawaka.
How Can You Help Habitat?
There are many ways to support Habitat of Saint Joseph County. To learn more about the following opportunities, contact Executive Director David Hatch or Development Director Richard Dueringer at (574) 288-6967.
• Consider sponsoring the expenses for a weekend build or for a Habitat home. While an entire home for a three-person family can start at $60,000, Habitat appreciates any financial donations you can provide. If your church or small fellowship group could develop a fundraiser to defray a portion of the costs for a Habitat build, the blessing could be significant.
• Volunteer your time at a Habitat build.
You don’t need to have specific skills to be valuable at a build – just be open-minded and willing to learn. Think about coordinating a campaign to sign-up volunteers for a project. Contact Habitat for more information on the next build.
• Donate quality building materials and supplies to ReStore. If you know of contractors or small business owners in your church that would be willing to donate much-needed supplies to ReStore, offer to contact ReStore and coordinate the delivery. The donations are tax-deductible, and many consumers (including Habitat families) will greatly benefit from this generosity.
• Volunteer your skills for Habitat. Even if you are unable to help with a Habitat build, the Saint Joseph County affiliate is interested in matching the skills of volunteers with specific projects they have. For example, if you are gifted in organization and administration, you would be a great blessing to Habitat the next time they create and implement a direct mail campaign. Or if you are more marketing-minded, Habitat could benefit from your insights to help develop and implement media relations strategies. If you are interested in helping Habitat of Saint Joseph County, and are willing to use your talents, the organization will find a place for you.
• Pray for the work of Habitat and for its families. Consider dedicating your church small group to praying for key partnerships and resources for Habitat, and for the families that are blessed by Habitat’s mission.
• Consider sending notes of encouragement to Habitat’s families, encouraging them that this home is just the beginning of what God has for them.
• Habitat for Humanity and the National Home Builders Association will be holding a Home Builders Blitz during the week of June 5th, 2006 to build 1,000 homes that week throughout the U.S. To do so, the organization needs to build partnerships with professional builders, manufacturers, and contractors. To learn how you or someone you know can help, contact your local Habitat affiliate.