The national Habitat for Humanity 2012 Home Builders Blitz kicks off locally on Market Street next Monday morning, June 4 at 7am when builders and volunteers gather to build two homes in one week! Market Street will be bustling with activity from 7am to 9pm each day as the visible foundation will quickly evolve hour by hour throughout the week into homes for two Habitat for Humanity families. The week’s efforts will culminate Saturday June 9 with the former host of This Old House, Steve Thomas, coming to Lawrence. He chose Merrimack Valley Habitat for Humanity as one of the few Builders Blitz sites he will visit during the week. Steve will tour the new homes Saturday morning June 9 and speak as part of the planned Saturday celebration.
“I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity to join home builders who are helping to make Home Builders Blitz a success,” said Thomas. “With their help and support, Habitat will be able to make affordable housing a reality with even more families this year. The expertise and skill these home building professionals bring to the table is a welcome addition to Habitat’s efforts to build affordable housing.”
Hundreds of volunteers will work throughout the week of June 4th to put the walls up, raise the roof, frame the rooms, install plumbing and electrical, paint the walls, landscape and do all the many details associated with building two 3-bedroom homes in one week. Dozens of local companies have contributed materials, monetary donations, food, volunteers and sweat equity to make this 2012 Home Builders Blitz an exciting time for the Merrimack Valley community and for two families who look forward to calling these two new Lawrence houses, “home.”
An overview of the week:
Opening Ceremonies 7 a.m. Monday June 4 onsite at Market Street in Lawrence
Monday through Saturday – teams of volunteers working on site from 7am to 9pm.
Saturday June 9 –Steve Thomas will tour the new homes, meet the families and join in the celebration of the 2012 Builders Blitz being completed in Lawrence, MA.
Home Builders Blitz 2012 is a partnership between Habitat for Humanity and the building industry to build homes across the country during the week of June 4 – June 10, 2012. The partnership between Merrimack Valley Habitat for Humanity and the six building companies exemplifies the power of people working together for a common cause: building homes and building hope.
“To have Steve Thomas support our efforts and join our team to build two homes on Market Street in Lawrence is tremendous. Building two homes in one week is aggressive. With the support and generosity of so many people we are looking forward to a great week next week giving hope and a home to two local families and improving a Lawrence neighborhood.” said Steve Howell, Merrimack Valley Habitat Board Member and Chairman of the Home Builders Blitz 2012.
Nationally, The Builders Blitz will build and/or renovate over 200 homes in one week. Here in the Merrimack Valley, the planning and effort has been underway since last Fall as the lead building companies joined forces and started planning the logistics of this fast-tracked home building project. While the building will physically take place in Lawrence, the effort reflects an “it takes a village” mentality as businesses and philanthropists across the region have stepped up and are contributing bydonating supplies, materials, labor, services, money and food. Despite challenging economic times, especially in building, the Builders Blitz has brought out the best in people across the Greater Boston area, the North Shore, Merrimack Valley and particularly in Lawrence. In early June, two families are getting the chance for a fresh start with a “hand up” versus a “hand out.” Consistent with the Habitat model, each selected family buys their home through a combination of hundreds of “sweat equity” hours and an interest free, no-profit  mortgage held by Merrimack Valley Habitat.
The six building companies leading the Merrimack Valley Habitat Home Builders Blitz 2012 include: Howell Custom Building Group (Lawrence), Meadowview Construction (Georgetown), Cote & Foster Construction (Methuen), Premier Builders (Georgetown), JSR Adaptive Energy Solutions (S. Hamilton & W. Falmouth) and Correct Temp, Inc (Methuen). Each firm is donating its time, energy and skills to build these two homes with projected out of pocket costs of approximately $230,000 and 15,000 hours of donated labor. Two-thirds of the cost will be covered by donations of labor andmaterials from the builders and the support of many local businesses sponsoring the effort.
In addition to the lead building companies, sponsors of the 2012 Builders Blitz include: Architectural Services: Andrew Steingiser Architects; Gold Sponsor:The Brien Family (land donation); Silver Sponsors: Watts Water Technologies, M&R Plumbing & Heating, B&D House of Carpets; Logistics Planning Committee: Â For Marketing Matters LLC, Beechwood Properties, Designer Bath and Salem Plumbing Supply, Sue Adams Interiors, Gifford Events; Bronze Sponsors:The Portland Group, Laars Heating Systems, Kendall Construction, Concepts in Concrete, American Standard, TAPCO, Avon Plumbing Supply, Lambert Roofing, J.W. Watson Trucking, Cover-Rite Siding & Window, Jackson Lumber, Breen and Sullivan. Iron Sponsors: MacClellan Concrete, Shea Concrete, Beacon Electric, NH Walls Panels, Certainteed, Larco Wallboard, Dana Wallboard, Harvey Industries, Hunter Douglas, Dow Industries, Pella Windows, The Green Cocoon Insulation, M&P Siding, The Security Team.
“A big thank you to the all our sponsors – including all our community sponsors –  as without their generous support of materials, labor, time and effort, building these two homes in one week would not be possible. This project is a fabulous example of the commitment to Habitat’s primary mission of building decent and affordable housing to families in need” said Susan Howell, Merrimack Valley Board Member, Co-Chair of the Builders Blitz, Howell Custom Building Group.
To learn more and to support the Home Builders Blitz 2012, please visit the website as opportunities are available for donating materials, labor or cash to help bring hope and homes to the 22 communities served. Volunteers are needed most weekends throughout the year as an ongoing way to assist in Habitat’s mission. Sign up to volunteer today.
About Merrimack Valley Habitat for Humanity
Merrimack Valley Habitat for Humanity is a non-profit organization dedicated to building homes and building hope in the Merrimack Valley. Founded in 1985, we have delivered on our mission for 75 families to date. We are the independent local affiliate of Habitat for Humanity International, the largest non-profit homebuilder in the world.  Working in partnership with families in need, volunteers, and donors, we build simple, affordable, homes that are then sold to the families at cost with a no-interest mortgage. This partnership makes it possible for families who could not otherwise afford a home realize the dream of homeownership. Every week, volunteers help the American Dream come alive in our community by volunteering their time and donating supplies. To help fund our work, we opened the first ReStore in the region in 2011. Promoting the benefit of reuse, reduce and recycle, we sell donated appliances, furniture, building materials and home furnishings at greatly reduced prices. To donate, volunteer or learn more about MV Habitat or our ReStore, please visit our website at http://www.merrimackvalleyhabitat.org/.