Family: Taking care of each other

Building affordable homes to better those in our community is what we’ve always worked hard to accomplish. We know that helping to provide stability to a family in need highly increases the likelihood of success in all of their lives. It provides security and responsibility with a purpose. These families become our family. And who understands the concept of family better than our veterans? With that, we are thrilled to announce our first Veterans Build. We are now rehabbing a previous Habitat home for a deserving veteran in Sugar Hill.

A few years back, an anonymous donor generously donated their home to Gwinnett Habitat. Though it was not feasible to affordably help a Habitat family with that exact home, we were able to use the proceeds from its sale to build or rehab homes for veterans in our community. Enter, this home in Sugar Hill. It was previously owned by another Gwinnett Habitat family, and with some major overhaul efforts, it will be a brand new home again, ready to bless someone else.

One of the greatest blessings of this donation, is the ability we have to include veteran supporting sponsors who could not normally afford a build day on their own. This seven week Veterans Build began Thursday, September 21 and will conclude on November 4, weather permitting. We are so excited to work with the following sponsors this fall: Cisco, Military Veterans Professional Association, Meadowcreek High School’s culinary program, Gwinnett Public Library, BrandBank, Georgia Gwinnett College, and a day for veterans volunteers in our community.

“We need to honor this person and what they did,” said Bridgette Simon of the Military Veterans Professional Association. “Those in the military fight for our freedoms, sometimes deploying at the drop of a hat, sacrificing themselves and their families. And they don’t question it. When you leave the military, you are no longer a cherished asset. We need to support our veterans, our family members. We need to value those who drop everything for us.”

Simon went on to explain how their organization, made up of employees at the CDC were excited to team up with Gwinnett Habitat. Their goal is ultimately to give back to a family member in need. Simon, now a veteran, was in the Army for 23 years.

One thing we understand at Gwinnett Habitat is family and this is a great example of humans adopting other humans and raising them up. To keep up with this story, follow us on social media: Facebook and Instagram, @habitatgwinnett. We will see you there!