Habitat for Humanity and the Community Housing Society to help the Hunt family

The international affordable housing facilitators — Habitat for Humanity — are collaborating with the Revelstoke Community Housing Society in a pilot project to bring their programs here. starting with a renovation of Pauline and Simon Hunt’s home to create an accessible, supportive space for their family, which includes two young daughters, as they all learn to live with Pauline’s diagnosis of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Pauline and Simon pose with their daughters Emily and Madeline. 

The international affordable housing facilitators — Habitat for Humanity — are collaborating with the Revelstoke Community Housing Society in a pilot project to bring their programs here. Affordable housing is a major concern in the community and Habitat for Humanity is one way citizens can work together to make a difference.

In a statement, the Kelowna affiliate of Habitat for Humanity said it will help with a renovation of Pauline and Simon Hunt’s home to create an accessible, supportive space for their family, which includes two young daughters, as they all learn to live with Pauline’s diagnosis of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. ALS is a devastating illness. Patients with ALS become progressively paralyzed due to degeneration of the upper and lower motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord. There is no cure for ALS.

The Hunts live in this 850-square-foot home at 419 6th Street East. Click on the image to see a larger version of this photo

A team of co-workers and friends have come together to make this happen for the family and the community. The team invites the community to learn more about Habitat for Humanity and the pilot project at a discussion of this opportunity on Tuesday, December 4, at 7:30 pm at the Powder Springs Inn.

“We’re happy to bring the Habitat program to Revelstoke for this worthy project,” said Lona Manning, executive director of Habitat for Humanity Kelowna. “Habitat is all about people coming together to give a family a hand up, not a hand out – and we believe Revelstoke has the heart to help the Hunt family in their time of need.”

The Housing Society has agreed to sponsor this pilot to showcase Habitat’s programs to the community and measure the interest in and fit of these programs in Revelstoke. Through volunteer labour, efficient management and tax-deductible donations of money and materials, Habitat for Humanity builds and rehabilitates simple, decent houses with the help of homeowner (partner) families. Habitat homes are sold to partner families with no down payment required and are financed with affordable, no-interest mortgages. Mortgage payments go into a revolving fund, which is used to build more homes for more families in need. Through Habitat for Humanity’s ReNewIt program the organization can also fix and renovate homes to make them safe, accessible and energy efficient, through interest-free loans to people who qualify.

“The Housing Society hopes the community will embrace Habitat for Humanity and support this pilot project,” Mark McKee, Chairman of the Revelstoke Community Housing Society Board, said in the statement. “We look forward to working with the Hunt family, Habitat for Humanity Kelowna and many community supporters to make this a successful project.”

Habitat for Humanity Kelowna has already helped the project along by securing a contribution from the Royal Bank Foundation, which the project team is grateful to receive. The Hunt family will be contributing through their own fundraising efforts, by volunteering during the construction and through a loan with Habitat for Humanity for a portion of the project costs.

“Our hearts are filled with gratitude for both the support of our family that this project provides, and the legacy we are creating that will benefit

The proposed project at Pauline and Simon’s home will require changs to accommodate a wide range of needs including wheelchair accessibility, transfer supports, cost effective heating, large main bedroom with modified private bathroom to accommodate future equipment and care needs, an additional or one larger bedroom for the girls, a bedroom for a live-in caregiver (recommended by the health professionals and important as the Hunts have no family in Revelstoke), separate public bathroom, and an accessible, open concept kitchen and space for family activities. Click on the image to see a larger version of it.

others in our community in the future,” expressed Simon Hunt.

Revelstoke citizens can get involved in a variety of ways to give this family a hand up and create the legacy by bringing Habitat for Humanity to Revelstoke:

  • Join the project team – they are looking for help with volunteer coordination and accounting.
  • Make trades or materials donations.
  • Collect your pennies for our Penny Drive – watch for donation cans around town.
  • Mail a cheque payable to Habitat For Humanity Kelowna, PO Box 25031 Mission Park PO, Kelowna, BC, V1W 3Y7. Please write “A Home for the Hunts” on your cheque.
  •  Contribute online at: http://www.canadahelps.org/GivingPages/GivingPage.aspx?gpID=18591
  • Volunteer during construction in the summer of 2013.

If you can’t get to the meeting on December 4, but you’d like to get involved, contact Cindy Pearce at cindypearce@telus.net  or 250 837-3966.

Click here to read a detailed description of this project and view its design.

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