Habitat For Humanity invites public to Dunmore event Monday

Dunmore, W.Va. –

Habitat for Humanity is a nonprofit, ecumenical Christian housing ministry. Habitat volunteer coordinator Brittany Means talks about the group’s work.

“How, basically, our program works is – we like to see Habitat is not a handout but a hand up,” she said. “We partner with low-income families and volunteers to help provide labor and help families build their own homes.”

Means explains why Habitat For Humanity builds and repairs homes.

“We believe that every person deserves a safe, decent place to live,” she said. “And it is part of Jesus’ calling to help with the basic needs. And, even on the needs hierarchy that’s been established. shelter is one of the very basic needs of humanity. So, we see a very big opportunity here in West Virginia and all over the world to put or faith into action by helping do that kind of thing. We’re doing a lot in Pocahontas County lately in working on repair work instead of constructing new homes. Though we do have three new homes slated for Durbin this summer, but we are also doing a lot of repair work.”

The coordinator invites the public to an event in Dunmore on Monday.

“On Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, we like to challenge the local community and volunteers to make it a day on, not a day off,” she said. “In Dunmore, we’re actually building a handicapped ramp and doing some interior repair, a little bit, for a family that is having some trouble getting into their home.

“This is open to everyone. We’re looking for volunteers to come out and help us. We’re going to meet at nine o’clock at the Gett’s house. That’s on [Route] 28 – it’s about 2.4 miles south of the split there at Dunmore of 92 and 28, toward Marlinton. They’re on the right as you’re coming from Dunmore. There will be some signs, we always have some Habitat signs with directional arrows. The Getts have their name – Getts – on a white sign on a tree. There’ll probably be some cars too, but the habitat signs should get you there.”

The event includes more than construction work.

“At 9 a.m., we’re going to have what’s called a call-to-action ceremony, where we sort of state why we’re there,” Means said. “The event is called ‘Building on a Dream,’ so we’re going to connect it to how Martin Luther King, Jr. had a dream that everyone would be equal, and how Habitat For Humanity is pursuing that with equality in housing.

“Then at lunchtime, we’re going to have a covered-dish dinner over at the Dunmore United Methodist Church for about an hour. Then migrate back to finish up the work and have a closing ceremony.”

If you can’t make it Monday, Habitat welcomes volunteers for future projects.

“We’re definitely looking for all sorts of volunteers,” Means said. “You don’t even have to have any construction experience. We have qualified construction crew leaders, who are there to help you along and that is their job to get people up to speed on the project we are doing. So, definitely, come on out if you have any kind of interest.”

To contact Almost Heaven Habitat For Humanity, call the Durbin office at 304-456-4843; the Franklin office at 304-358-7642 or email volunteer@almostheavenhabitat.org.