When Habitat for Humanity approached us in October 2019 about the 2020 Apostle Build, we planned as if we wouldn’t be 5 months into a worldwide pandemic. For many that don’t know, the Habitat for Humanity Apostle Build is an opportunity that comes up every few years for many churches in the area to fully fund and build a house for a local family. Initially, the goal was to have 12 churches join in, funding 1/12th of the cost and doing 1/12th of the volunteer work. But then, as we all know, we fell into an unpredictable and difficult to manage season, especially for non-profit organizations that are dependent on community volunteers in order to thrive. Logistically, many things had to change, but the goal to provide a home for single mother Allison Bowyer and her children did not.
The team at Habitat for Humanity came up with effective and efficient solutions to many of the barriers, offering safe and reasonable work conditions that included masks, social distancing, and limiting the number of volunteers. Even with the limit placed on numbers, teams were able to complete the tasks at hand and beyond! Specifically for our Gateway team, on August 31, we accepted the challenge of putting up trusses. We provided six volunteers from 8am-12pm, six volunteers from 1pm-5pm, and five volunteers from 5pm-8pm. By 10:30am, our team had finished putting up the trusses and decided to move on to the next task at hand, sheathing. It was truly encouraging to see things come together so quickly as we all supported one another and worked as a team. By the end of the day, our group had put up the trusses, installed roof sheathing, and even done many other tasks in and around the house. The before and after pictures below show the progress of the house from the start of our volunteer day to the end.
On October 3, the day had come when all of the volunteers from churches in the community were able to gather at the home they helped build for Allison Bowyer and her children. Many church leaders in the community helped dedicate the home by praying over the various rooms, praying over the family, and we even celebrated a time of worship when our very own Lindsay Norman led us in song, giving thanks to God for the amazing work He had done. To see the genuine rejoicing from the family receiving the home, as well as all the churches that came together to help make it a reality, was a moment that won’t be forgotten. Allison has been preparing for home ownership by going through classes including Financial Peace University. Her words the day of the celebration were that she and her children are “blown away” and “so, so grateful.”
A special thanks to all of the volunteers from Gateway Church who volunteered at the Apostle Build! The finished house can be seen in the pictures below.
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