Habitat for Humanity: Faith Builds

August 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, 2022

Our are once again partnering with Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity to help construct new homes in Chaska. The site we are building on is called the Faith Builds site because all the volunteers each week come from various faith communities around the Twin Cities Metro! It is the same site of the project last year but we are now working on new homes in the cul-de-sac “Niskanen Circle.”

Last summer in July 2021, we welcomed Anne and Julia of Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity for a presentation and discussion titled, “There’s no place like home!” The Transformational Power of Homeownership.

Some of the key learnings we took away included:

• Habitat for Humanity was originally imagined as Koinonia Farm by a biblical scholar/farmer named Clarence Jordan in Georgia in 1942.
• Twin Cities Habitat was first started by a Lutheran congregation in South Minneapolis in 1985.
• Affordable, safe housing is linked to many other needs: quality education, stability, better health, access to transportation and jobs, and more! We heard one Habitat homeowner’s story of how her home is her “sanctuary.” It has meant family, community, security, and thriving together.
• Habitat not only builds new homes but also purchases and rehabs homes, provides mortgages for clients to buy on the open market, helps clients make repairs so they can stay in their homes, does advocacy work, and more.
• Historically because of racist policies and structures in place, affordable housing has been denied to People of Color. Despite many progressive social programs, Minnesota is one of the worst states for racial disparities in housing. The experience of searching for and securing housing for a Person of Color is much harder than for whites.
• Habitat has extensive financial and homeowner coaching for their clients, which ensure that their homeowners are ready for the challenge of owning a home! They learn skills for financial planning, home repair, and being part of a neighborhood. Habitat families receive post-purchasing support as well.

Learn more about Twin Cities Habitat at this link.

Ready to get involved or have questions? Fill out the form below and Grace Koleczek, Risen Savior’s Social Justice & Adult Faith Formation Coordinator, will get back to you.