Dear Friends,
Our theme at Muncie Habitat for Humanity this year is “We See Hope”. As we drive through Muncie and our surrounding towns, it seems like rundown properties and blight have an everlasting grip on our community. It can seem bleak – and maybe, at times, even hopeless.
However, at Habitat, the lens we choose to look through is one filled with hope – the kind of hope that is confident and sure there are better days and brighter skies ahead. Why do we see hope at Habitat?
First, Habitat for Humanity has a model that evolves—allowing us to see hope everywhere!
Habitat’s model has worked around the globe for over 35 years. It has provided a way for working, low-income families to achieve the dream of a decent, affordable home. You may remember when Habitat was synonymous with building NEW homes. That has changed significantly in more recent years as Habitat for Humanity evolved to house rehabilitations and home repair projects.
Why?
Our community has been challenged with an abundance of vacant properties, and Habitat needed to evolve in order to meet the needs of the community.
Second, neighbors helping neighbors never gets old—and hope abounds!
Habitat brings together volunteers from all walks of life. Volunteers are the lifeblood of Habitat! They come week after week with smiles on their faces. They often get dirty and sweaty, and sometimes leave with blisters and scrapes. They stand walls and they raise roofs, and sometimes they tear out walls and pull up carpet.
Why do they do it? I believe it is because of hope – the hope they see grow in the families who are partnering with Habitat, and the hope that emerges in themselves as they find, through Habitat, a way to make a difference.
Lastly, solving issues like poverty and substandard housing are bigger than just Habitat for Humanity—allowing all of us to witness hope together!
Hope shows up, when people, organizations, churches, local businesses, our city, our colleges and universities … when we all, rise to the challenge TOGETHER! Issues like poverty, substandard housing, and dilapidated neighborhoods cannot be solved alone—and we realize the strength of hope when we join hands to make an even bigger impact.
This community knows how to come together. And at Habitat, we no longer see our efforts – and the homes we build or rehab – as the full story of a community’s transformation. We actively seek to partner in order to see hope emerge in our neighborhoods!
In partnership,