There is a lot of work behind the scenes to make a Help Build Hope event work.

From the scheduling and coordinating partners, and trailer maintenance there are countless hours that go into preparing an event before a trailer even leaves our parking lot. An aspect of this ministry that isn’t seen but is absolutely vital is drawing the plans for the homes that we build. 

For the past eight years we have had the pleasure of working with Jan Bennett. With an extensive background in construction, Jan has been indispensable in planning the homes we build. It is a multi-stepped process of coordinating with Habitat, drawing in the plans in CAD, going through reviews, then finally splitting the home up into panelized sections for volunteers to build. 

“Construction is my God-given talent,” explained Jan. “As a child I was very into architecture and mechanically inclined. I started in construction full time at 17 and have been ever since.” But for Jan the job is about the families that will live in the homes she draws.

For Families

Before she started working with Help Build Hope, Jan was a construction manager with Habitat for Humanity in Ohio. While there, she learned that Help Build Hope events streamline the building process for Habitats. This enables Habitat to build more homes and help more families. 

Part of her job at Habitat was to work alongside families while they completed their service hours and learn skills to take care of their home. She has countless stories of lives being changed, for the parents, kids, and generations to come after. 

“It’s about giving families good, reliable homes that will empower them and their children,” began Jan. There is one family that stuck in her mind. When meeting with the Mom in preparation for her service hours, Jan asked what are you good at ? The Mom insisted that she was not good at anything, but Jan felt otherwise. “So I decided she was going to learn, and learn who she was. I partnered her up with reliable volunteers who would teach her a new skill and how to use power tools every week.” 

At this Habitat a family had to complete 500 service hours to receive their home. At the end of this family’s hours, the Mom had found her special skill in laying flooring. “I called her a Flooring Ninja,” explained Jan. “She was able to be the lead for flooring installs in the Habitat homes. Teaching others how to use the tools and best ways to install. Every floor she installed came out perfectly. It changed how she viewed herself and how she parented her daughters. You aren’t just helping the family in front of you, it’s all the generations after as well.”

Jan went on to share a study that Habitat conducted, looking at the effect of reliable housing on children. “It was very enlightening to learn that when children have their own home, on average their grades will go up a whole letter in just one year. Kids need a firm foundation in their life – the home gives them that.”

Prayers

At the end of every Help Build Hope event, the walls are stood so volunteers can write prayers, scriptures, and words of encouragement on the studs of the home. Jan was certainly moved by the experience at her first Help Build Hope, “What better insurance could you have than the writing of prayers and scriptures on the wall panels?. It is a powerful protection for your children and family.”

Jan summed up the importance of this work perfectly: “There are very few things you do in your life that in such a short time can affect a family in such a powerful way. A few hours Volunteering with Help Build Hope you are building a home. It changes the lives of families and children. If you really want to make an impact for God, this is the way to do it. It is huge, with a lasting impact.”

Are you ready to make a lasting impact? Contact andy@crossroadsmissions.com to find out how to host a Help Build Hope event. And look into your local Habitat or Fuller center so you can follow the home through to completion!