MAY 14, 2009 ISSUE
Avery County Habitat for Humanity Dedicates Home to Buchanan Family
By the end of this week, the Buchanan family will move into a house that they can truly call their own thanks to the most recent project of Avery County Habitat for Humanity. The Buchanan’s new residence is located on Friendship Lane in the Milford Meadows development in Elk Park.
“We kind of did it as a joke,” said Jessica Buchanan about her family’s application to Avery County Habitat for Humanity.
She said that they were so down on their luck at the time that they didn’t even expect a call back. But they got one and this past Saturday, almost a year after breaking ground, they held the dedication ceremony for their new home on Friendship Lane in the Milford Meadows development in Elk Park. They’ll be ready to move in sometime this week.
Avery County Habitat for Humanity is a local branch of Habitat for Humanity International, which is a “nonprofit, ecumenical Christian housing organization,” according to its website, www.averycohfh.org. Its goal is “to eliminate poverty housing and to make decent shelter a matter of conscience and action.”
The homes built by the organization are not charity or part of a giveaway program. The families who apply and are accepted have to put in 500 hours of labor, referred to by Habitat for Humanity as “sweat equity.” Work on homes isn’t begun until the families do the first 100 hours of this labor working for the Avery Habitat for Humanity in some form.
“We did our first 100 hours helping to build other homes,” said Buchanan. The remaining 400 hours were spent working on their own home—painting, installing floors and cabinetry, and other general construction jobs.
Avery Habitat helped the Buchanan’s in taking extra care to build their home with concern for their daughter’s allergies. All the floors in the house are hard surface.
All homes built by Avery County Habitat for Humanity are certified System Vision Homes, which helps reduce utility bills. The heating costs are even guaranteed and will not go up. The N.C. Housing Finance Agency provides a loan of $20,000 and a grant of $5,000 for every home built by the organization.
In addition to their sweat equity, families who build homes finance them through a 0 percent interest, 20-year mortgage with Habitat for Humanity. The mortgage payments are recycled into the program and go to help fund the building of homes for other families.
Besides the labor put in by families like the Buchanan’s, most of the work on houses is done by volunteers. According to Melanie Burgin, office and programs manager for Avery County Habitat for Humanity, they need more help.
“Anyone can get involved,” said Burgin. “They can serve as a board member, join a committee or just donate their time by helping build the houses.”
Founded in 1993, Avery County Habitat for Humanity has built 24 homes for Avery residents. For the next few years, every home they build will be in the Milford Meadows development. The 40-acre planned community was named in honor of the Reverend Charlie Milford, founder of Avery Habitat.
In related news, Avery Habitat hosted its Women Build Day on May 7. Twenty-three women participated in completing the floor system and plywood sub-floor for the future home of Chris and Amanda Gwyn and their two children. Volunteers are still needed to help finish the home.
Also, Avery County Habitat for Humanity will be holding its annual Fundraising Dinner on Tuesday, June 9, at 6:00 p.m. in the gym of Crossnore First Baptist Church. Tickets are $12 for adults and $7 for kids 12 and under.
For more information or to learn about how to help, call the Avery Habitat office at 828-733-1909 or click to www.averycohfh.org.
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