Professional volunteers build homes for holidays

Nabholz Construction provided Habitat with a construction crew for two weeks. Contractor Dale Gillespie donated yard-grading services. And Bestway Moving and Storage offered moving services to the families who were scheduled to close on their homes this month.

“Getting our families into their homes is Habitat’s top priority, and it was exciting to see how many people were willing to help,” Bob Potocnjak, Habitat’s construction manager, said in a news release. “The Springfield Contractors Association did a great job to help get the word out. They put our flyer in the SCA newsletter, and the calls came immediately.”

The four Habitat partner families who are home for the holidays this year are: the Akers, a merged family of nine with children ages 4 to 19; the Blanchards, a single mother and her 14-year-old, ill daughter, who were evacuated from Louisiana following Hurricane Katrina; the Fergusons, a family of five who has been living with extended family in an over-crowded home; and the Cottrells, a single father and his 8-year-old son living in transition housing.

Habitat for Humanity of Springfield has provided affordable housing in Greene County since 1988, helping more than 400 people via construction of more than 95 Habitat homes. Families partner with Habitat and community sponsors to build and buy their own home with the benefit of a no-interest, no-profit loan and an affordable mortgage. More information is available at www.habitatspringfieldmo.org.[[In-content Ad]]