Eighteen members of four families hope to live in new homes built through a “Blitz Build” by River City Habitat for Humanity.
The local agency held a groundbreaking ceremony for the blitz Monday morning at 415 E. Ashley St. The address is the site of one of four houses Habitat for Humanity will build this year in addition to its normal four, said Susan Cook-Williams, the local agency’s director.
Through the blitz, Habitat for Humanity is doubling its annual home-building efforts in response to the May 2019 tornado that devastated housing in Jefferson City.
The EF-3 tornado destroyed or made 150 housing units, including apartments, in the city uninhabitable.
So Habitat for Humanity created the “Road to Recovery Blitz,” in which it will build the four additional homes at 904, 914 and 916 Jackson St. and at the Ashley Street location.
“Habitat is no stranger to bad weather and natural disasters,” Cook-Williams said. “So we are forging forward. We are recruiting volunteers. We are still fundraising. And we want to get some families into our homes.”
The additional builds are expected to cost approximately $400,000 total. The organization has raised about $280,000 for the blitz. Thrivent Financial awarded the project with a $60,000 grant to help with one of the homes. Jefferson City has agreed to assist with the blitz, and provided demolition services for structures that stood on the sites previously. The city provided planning services for the new homes.
And the city is “sponsoring” the Ashley Street home, which is known as the “Mayor’s Challenge Home.”
Beginning June 1, volunteers are needed Mondays through Saturdays to help with the builds.
Numerous volunteers are needed. No matter what your abilities, call Habitat for Humanity at 573-635-8439 to see how you might help.
It’s been about 10 months since the tornado struck Jefferson City, Ron Medin, chair of the organization’s blitz committee, reminded about two dozen listeners who stood in the rain for the ceremony Monday.
“Everybody thought it was the end,” Medin said. “But we’re here and we’re building. We hope to — God willing and coronavirus staying at a distance — have this done by the end of September.”
The blitz build will take hundreds of volunteers over the summer and will fill the community with activity.
“Things are going very well, and we’re confident we can have four families in homes by at least the end of the year,” Medin said. “This is evidence of our commitment to the community and evidence the community is willing to rally around this.”
He added his goal is to have the families in the homes by the end of September.
Although Habitat for Humanity has awarded the four homes to families, it has not yet determined which families will receive which homes.
Two of the new homeowners (who will be required to put sweat equity into their houses) were available for the groundbreaking — Kennysha Harrison and Jessica Green.
Harrison told listeners she and her husband have four small children. The tornado destroyed the home where they lived, but they were able — through their landlord — to find another apartment. However, the rent of the apartment is higher than they can afford, so they are squeaking by.
“I feel like this home will be something that I can call my own,” Harrison said. “And I’m very grateful to have it.”
Green, who has four children, is still living in the home on Jackson Street where she lived before the tornado. It was severely damaged, Cook-Williams said, but Green’s landlord was able to make enough emergency repairs that the family could remain there.
There will be challenges, said Donna Brown, River City Habitat for Humanity board chair. She reiterated the organization needs donations and volunteers.
“You can help on the build, and you don’t have to be skilled,” Brown said. “You can help with meals. You can help by just running errands.”
It’s going to take a lot of coordination to continue eight builds, she said.
Cook-Williams added that with the spread of the novel coronavirus known as COVID-19, Habitat for Humanity will halt all builds until the end of March. It will not be doing construction, and the office will be closed. It will re-evaluate at the beginning of April, she said.
For the safety of its donors and volunteers, Habitat for Humanity suspended all activities through the end of the month, Cook-Williams said in a news release.
“Our families are of the utmost importance,” she said Monday. “We look forward to getting everyone back into a normal routine very soon.”
