Carpenter Club ... It's a Simple Plan

It's truly a simple plan, and it is way more relevant than that French-Canadian Rock-Pop band, Simple Plan, from the 90's. (we doubt that you even remember their tunes.) Our simple plan doesn't even require you to lift a hammer to help. It all starts with a tiny donation, and yields a hefty sum of money. No, we aren't talking about a pyramid scheme, we are talking about the Carpenter Club. The Carpenter Club is made up of approximately 250 members, who pledge to donate $25 for every house that we complete throughout the year. This year we have planned to complete 5 houses. Therefore, we will ideally raise a little over $31,000.

We have just completed our second house for the year, which coincidentally is our Carpenter Club Build. This will be the 7th Carpenter Club house. The Carpenter Club was founded in 2005, and the club broke ground on their first house in 2006.

On Sunday, August 4 at 4:00 pm in Partnership Village Habitat for Humanity will celebrate it's 55th Dedication. Ella Stokes will be the proud new homeowner of the 7th Carpenter Club house. It's a simple plan that has made a significant impact.

At the risk of sounding cliche' your $25 donation will help build a house for a family in need of a hand up.
Our goal is to have 500 members so that we can fully fund a Carpenter Club house every year. Why wait, Join Today!

http://www.habitatsalinecounty.com/carpenter-club/

Why We Serve

At a glance, the Millennial generation often gets a bad wrap for being considered lazy, entitled, or for having an instant gratification mentality, and yet, at a glance, there are few who unabashedly dare to break the mold. By hosting the 2013 Habitat Learn and Build Alumni Experience, Habitat for Humanity of Saline County has had the luxury to spend the week with students from around the world who are radically dispelling the generational stereotypes. The Learn and Build Experience is a unique build. These volunteers aren't merely learning construction skills, they are also learning about the world-wide housing crisis and how they can help on a national and local level. The students have submerged themselves into the Saline County community, and then, in return are making a direct impact in the community by volunteering not only with Habitat, but with other Non-profit organizations throughout Saline County.

In addition to breaking the mold, they are giving others a "hand up" along the way. The group has broken ground on Saline County's 57th Habitat home, which is being built for one of our partner-families, Hayley Hicks and her three sons, Payton, Preston, and Parker. Hayley has summed up her experience with the LBE group in three simple words, blessed, grateful, and emotional. She is grateful that the LBE students are building a home for her family, and blessed that
they are also building a life for her family, a yard for their dog, and a place for her sons to play basketball.

To learn more about Habitat Learn and Build Experience visit Habitat.org.
 Why We Serve

Watermelon Social

Nothing signals Summer more than the vine-like flowering fruit, Watermelon, which has long be known for being a staple to any "good" Fourth of July Party. Nothing breaks the heat like a Watermelon Social. And nothing can compare to Arkansas Watermelons.

As the canoe full of watermelon rolled in and the water slide inflated, residents in Partnership Village eagerly anticipated an evening full of fun, fellowship, and of course, watermelon. Although we didn't break Arkadelphia, Arkansas' Lloyd Bright's record for the heaviest watermelon (weighing in at 268.8 lbs, recorded at the Annual Hope, Arkansas Big Watermelon Contest on September 3, 2005), the evening was a hit. 

We would like to extend our gratitude to First Baptist Church for hosting the first and hopefully annual Watermelon Social in Partnership Village. It was a great to way to kick off the Apostle's Build recruitment season and welcome students from around the world as they arrive in Saline County to participate in the only Habitat Learn and Build Alumni Experience Build for 2013. We are anxiously awaiting for next year's Watermelon Social. 

Tuesday Mornings

Out of all the days of the week, I'd say that Tuesday could be considered the most crucial day. There's Super Tuesday, Black Tuesday, Fat Tuesday, Ruby Tuesday, New Music Tuesday, and then there's the Tuesday Crew.

Bright and early every Tuesday, you can find a group of dedicated volunteers in Partnership Village. They faithfully arrive with hammers in hand ready to work as they fulfill Habitat's mission. We have affectionately coined these core volunteers as the Tuesday Crew. The Tuesday Crew coordinates tasks on the construction site and mentors new volunteers. During Saturday Build days and Build Weeks, they continue mentor new volunteers by giving them basic home construction skills that they can carry with them throughout life. They are more than mere volunteers they are the backbone of Partnership Village, and because of their diligence every Tuesday in Partnership village is considered Transformation Tuesday.

The Tuesday Crew is essential to Habitat's Mission of building simple, decent, affordable housing. If you are interested in joining the Tuesday Crew visit habitatsalinecountyar.org or call 501-315-5434.

No prior skills needed! The Tuesday Crew will mentor you!

It Starts with a Simple PB&J

During our Monday morning staff meeting, we discussed some of Habitat of Saline County's strengths and struggles. While there are "a-bazillion" strengths, we do have some struggles. One of our main struggle is finding new people to donate meals to the construction site. We want to make volunteering on the construction site as easy as possible; therefore, we just ask that volunteers simply show up! In return we provide volunteers with training, Habitat gear, and meals.

One of our staff members proclaimed that we need to show people that it all starts with a simple PB&J. We sat dumbfounded as she launched into her favorite story about her grandmother. Her mother came from a large Italian family of 13 that lived in a three bedroom house. They didn't have much money-by societies standards they were poor, and in fact, if Habitat for Humanity had been active, the family would have been prime candidates.
One hot summer afternoon, a man knocked on the door of the small rundown house and asked for a sandwich. The children were ready say they didn't have any extra food, when their mother intervened and went into the kitchen to make a Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich. She didn't stop at one, she sent the man home with an extra. When one of the older children asked her why she made another sandwich because he only asked for one, she simply replied that the man probably wasn't going home to an empty house and he probably had a family that was just as hungry as he was. She concluded by explaining that God had given them the means to spare an extra sandwich, and sometimes we are called to give more than what is asked of us.

While our volunteers might have the means to pack a lunch, we don't want breakfast and lunch to stand in the way of someone volunteering on the construction site. We feel if they are donating their time to build a house for their neighbor, the least we can do is feed our volunteers because after all they, too, are our neighbors.They might not be next door, but they are still our neighbors.

Please visit www.habitatsalinecountyar.org or call 501-315-5434 if you would like to donate meals to the construction site.

Merci, Gracias, Arigato, Grazie, Toda, Danke, Thank you

Sometimes a simple thank you just isn't enough to express our sincere gratitude. There is an array of emotions that run through each of us as we embark on a Build Week. We feel everything from anxiety to utter excitement, while our future homeowners feel profoundly grateful.
Arkansas REALTORS Build week will go down in the Habitat for Humanity of Saline County's record book. It was a seamless week full of love and hard work. We had approximately 65 realtors throughout the state of Arkansas volunteer 960 hours to build future homeowner Susan Myers' house.
Associate Director, Amy Bennett said that this build was one of the most successful builds she has seen. Myer's house progressed much further than expected, and that wouldn't have been possible without the enthusiasm and hard work exhibited from AR REALTORS.

From the bottom of our hearts,

Merci, Gracias, Arigato, Grazie, Toda, Danke, Thank you

Why Sale, When You Can build?

At Habitat we often ask the question, "Why rent, when you can own?" Our philosophical question has spawned the Arkansas REALTORS Association to ask their own philosophical question, "Why sale, when you can build?"

In late February the Arkansas REALTORS Association donated $20,000 to Habitat for Humanity of Saline County through their Hearts and Homes Foundation with the intention of participating in a full build. Tomorrow they will break ground on Susan Myers' house. The Kick Off Ceremony will take place in Partnership Village at 3:00 in the afternoon. Arkansas REALTORS and Susan would like to extend an invitation to you to join in the festivities.

Susan Myers is spunky vibrant women, and has been a joy to welcome into the Habitat family. She is a retired Weapons Technician for the Navy, and has had the opportunity to live around the world. Fortunately for us, she has recently moved to be closer to her family, and called Saline County home for the past four years. Susan is excited about owning her own home through the Habitat Homeownership Program and sees this opportunity as a blessing to serve others.