LETTER: Local Habitat reaches beyond borders

An Aguan family thanks Spencer Countians and Spencer County Habitat for Humanity for their generosity and compassion.

When completed, the Montes family’s home will be similar to the one above.

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The Montes family hopes to be in their new house sometime in August.

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Just months after finishing the first Habitat house in Spencer County, your local Habitat began another build-this time in Agua, in Honduras, Latin America.

Habitat for Humanity International encourages affiliates to tithe, to help families all over the world. A tithe is 10% of the cash from donations and fund-raising, not specifically designated to go to the local build. Last year, the SCHFH Board voted to send a tithe to Latin America. In February, SCHFH President Bill Drury, and Family Support Chair Roger Cox, attended the Habitat for Humanity Conference in Atlanta, where they met Latin America Representative Gaby Chávez. She gave Bill and Roger information on areas most in need of help and a video conference was set up where Gaby could speak to the Spencer County Habitat Board.

After the video conference, the Spencer County Habitat Board discussed the options and prayed for direction. It was decided the $4,767.68 tithe would go to the small, poor and very remote Honduran village of Agua. The people there get very little help from outside, due to their location and the terribly wet climate. Just recently, two teams of volunteers had to be evacuated by helicopter because torrential rains caused dangerous flooding. A normal house-build in Honduras takes approximately two weeks. A home, built in Agua, could take up to three months.

The Montes, the Aguan family selected by their local affiliate, lives in a mud and stick house, with a dirt floor and no indoor bathroom. The mother, father and their 5 children live in the one-room mud structure. Conditions like this cause disease to run rampant.

The Montes family’s new home will be made of concrete block and have two separate rooms, an indoor bathroom and a concrete floor. The solid door and shuttered windows will help protect them from fierce storms. The house will be completed in about 7 weeks, depending on the weather. Please go to  www.spencercountyhfh.com and click the “Home Projects” then “Honduras” tabs for progress pictures and more information.

 Spencer County Habitat is in need of committee members! If you can help, please call 477-2263 and leave a message. Our office phone is unstaffed. Or send an email to  chair.volunteerrelations@spencercountyhfh.com or  president@spencercountyhfh.com.

Thanks to all who have helped with donations, volunteering and prayers. Through your support, Spencer County Habitat has been able to help families, near and far.

The Board of the 

Spencer County

Habitat for Humanity