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Habitat homeowners attend fund-raiser dinner
By FRANK HARTZELL
Of the Advocate --
Article
Last
Updated:10/26/2006 07:42:19 AM PDT; edited by permission of publisher
Irene
Graeta had to search for just
the right word in English to describe the thrill of getting a Habitat
for
Humanity home.“I feel very good about Habitat. It is too much. I like
it too
much. Muy Bueno,” she said as she labored over a hot stove at the Oct.
7
Habitat for Humanity dinner.
Habitat
just finished three homes
off Dana Street on Dick Williams Way in Fort Bragg, including that of
Graeta,
and is working to get two more homes in that area closed in before
winter with
completion planned by next summer. The families have already been
chosen for
the Dana Street
area homes.
Teresa
Hurtado, who has lived in Fort
Bragg
for 23 years and works as a housekeeper, will get her first home ever,
along
with her family, which includes two children.
Habitat
for Humanity helps families
get affordable homes, requiring them to put their own sweat equity into
the
project. Hurtado helped her future neighbor Graeta build her home and
Graeta
and her family will do the same, in old-fashioned barn raising
style.“It is
always worth it. You come home tired and work on the house and it is
worth
every bit of the effort,” Hurtado said. “Without Habitat I would never
have had
a house.”
Mendocino Coast Habitat for Humanity is currently in negotiations for a project on South McPherson in Fort Bragg that could have 11 condominiums, according to Gayanne Alexander,
president of the Habitat board. Habitat plans to launch an application drive, with applicants chosen by need, income, credit and family size. Applicants must meet low income guidelines set by the federal Housing and Urban Development agency, she said.
The
Mexican dinner fund-raiser
offered mountains of freshly made enchiladas, pork and chicken tamales,
chips
and salsa, a special cactus salsa recipe that was a crowd favorite and,
of
course, lots of rice and beans.
“You
come to support Habitat but you
stay for the food,” said Jim Jackson of Mendocino.“The chili verde,
tamales and
enchiladas all are excellent. I see a lot of my friends here each year
and it’s
a great organization,” he said.
“It’s a great way to
create
ownership, the people building their own project right from the
beginning.”
said Yarrow Summers. “This is a very important organization for people
who
might not have otherwise ever been able to purchase a home.”
Virtual Auction 2006
 Successful Auction
Brings Habitat Folks
Together
Auctioneer Sally Welty deftly paced patter and gavel
worked the crowd at the Young house for a total of nearly $13,000 as
they alternately fought and
collaborated to outbid
each other. She successfully "sold" bid lots from the foundations
to the roof and all the trimmings
while explaining how the homes were built and what they mean to Habitat
families. Several participants also volunteered
for construction work and everyone left with a better grasp of
Habitat's needs and stewardship
of gifts,which are recovered as repaid mortgages. Harvest market
catered the delicious
food enjoyed by us all. (Photo from 05 Auction)
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MEXICAN DINNER PROVES THAT A FORK CAN
HELP TO
BUILD A HOUSE
