A Cool Solution For A Hot Habitat
- searcylivingads
- Feb 5
- 5 min read
By Jennifer Webb
“Habitat for Humanity is an organization that tries to take care of the community. This was the community’s chance to give something back to Habitat.”
It was supposed to be another scorcher - A high of 97 with a heat index of 113 F. Even though it was early morning, Rick could already feel the humidity. It was so thick you could almost swim through it.
He watched as the volunteers arrived, many carrying their own personal fans. Many of them were retired, but they were tough. They weren’t going to let the heat get in the way.
The Habitat for Humanity ReStore would open early again today and close an hour earlier - a concession for the heat. By afternoon, Rick knew that sweat would be pouring off everyone and those fans would blow 100-degree air on their owners. Some days were hotter in the store than outside.
“I’d donate a kidney if we could get some air conditioning in here!” one spunky volunteer joked with him.
That started him and the Habitat for Humanity board thinking; they had just signed another five year lease on the building. Blessed with such a fantastic location, perhaps it was time to consider upgrading the building that houses the Habitat for Humanity ReStore. One section of the building already had central heat and air, but the other, more warehouse-type part where the cash register is located, did not.
The tall ceilings, big garage doors, skylights, and poor insulation meant that installing central heat and air would be a massive undertaking. It was also likely to be quite cost-prohibitive. With Habitat, all the funds raised in the ReStore support their mission - to provide low-cost housing to low-income families.
With a space as big as they had, they were looking at nearly the cost of building a house to get the central heat and air installed. Still, as hot as it was getting, something had to give. Rick gave in and called Adam Hart for advice. Adam has supported Habitat For Humanity for almost 20 years and seems to always have a good solution to a challenge or issue they’re facing. After reviewing the situation, Adam connected Habitat with Justin Dodson of Dodson Heat and Air.
Justin came to take a look and then he got busy calling his suppliers. Clairday Electric agreed to wire the HVAC units. Habitat for Humanity is an organization that tries to take care of the community. This was the community’s chance to give something back to Habitat.
Rick and the Habitat for Humanity Board were shocked when they got the quote, in the best possible way! With everyone donating and pitching in, the estimated cost was only one-third of what they thought it would be.
Habitat did what they could themselves - sealing off skylights, insulating the huge garage doors, and the community filled in the gaps. The warehouse section lost a lot of illumination after the skylights were closed off, giving it a cave-like feel. Stokes Electric took care of that; their electricians contacted a local electrical supply house to obtain nine new light fixtures and other materials. I-DO Rental provided scissor lifts so the workers could safely access the high ceiling on the HVAC and lighting installations.
The extra insulation on the seven large garage doors added about 50 extra pounds to each, but Andy Sills and his technicians at Garage Door Services made all the necessary adjustments to ensure they were safe.
The Habitat ReStore stayed open the entire time during the process. Now when you go in, you are met with a blast of cool air in the summertime instead of hot. It’s a much more pleasant experience for shoppers, donors, and volunteers. Shoppers can linger and look to their hearts’ content. Volunteers can spend comfortable hours supporting a mission they believe in, that gives back to the community.
Habitat’s official mission - to provide affordable housing to low-income families - is only the beginning of what they do. Consider this hypothetical situation:
A single Mom who has two kids and makes $15/hour applies for a Habitat house. They accept her application on the condition that she will put in 300 hours of “sweat equity” and agree to make a monthly 0% interest mortgage payment until the cost of building the house is repaid. Friends and family can work 10% of those sweat equity hours for her, but the rest, she must spend working on her own house or volunteering in the Habitat ReStore. She sees all the volunteers that come and work on the house. She works alongside the people who have donated their time and materials to make this seemingly impossible dream happen for her.
She makes connections and builds relationships with them. Now she has other people who become friends, and her support network enlarges. Now, she has people to call when she needs a hand with the kids and grandmotherly influences who give her much-needed advice and encouragement.
She meets other families who have children the same age as hers. They tell her how someone can get a two-year nursing degree to earn double her current wage. Right now, that’s not possible, because so much of her money is going to rent and simply surviving. But she’s also going to classes that teach her how to care for her house with basic maintenance and money management classes, and she starts to see hope for a better life.
When the house is completed and she moves in, the people and the relationships stay in her life. Now that she’s not paying almost half of her salary for rent and utilities, she can afford to go back to school and get that nursing degree. The kids are doing well in school because of the newfound stability, and she has a renewed sense of confidence and self-worth.
In providing affordable housing, Habitat for Humanity helps her take the steps to improve the lives of her family.
The focus of Habitat’s mission is not simply the construction of homes, but the development and empowerment of people and communities. Habitat has an interest in the people involved in its ministry, both the owners of Habitat fir Humanity homes and those involved with homeowners in the construction of those homes. The organization seeks to break down barriers and form partnerships among people from all walks of life; relationships are the most important thing Habitat builds.
Every time you donate, volunteer, or shop at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore, that’s what you’re supporting. Along with the new central heat and air unit, that’s what makes Habitat for Humanity ReStore such a cool place to support. To find out more about White County’s Habitat for Humanity, please visit www.habitatwhiteco.org/restore.html.
Read the full issue below.