Habitat Task Force
The Habitat Task Force, with great help from the UUCB congregation, continues to make significant contributions of funds and volunteers to support efforts of Habitat for Humanity of Monroe County to help provide more affordable housing opportunities for local people. The lack of affordable, decent homes is a persistent problem in Monroe County.
This spring, the task force will donate $10,000 to help financially sponsor another home in Habitat’s Osage Place neighborhood that will ultimately house 69 families on the southwest side of Bloomington. We raised funds through lunches provided to the congregation, chili and soup take-home sales, UU Holiday Bazaar sales, and proceeds from IU football game parking at UU.
Task force members, who work hard to organize fundraisers, are so grateful for the congregation’s willingness to buy meals and crafts and also to contribute food and items for us to sell. Our Breaking Bread for Habitat brunch in Fellowship Hall, with a take-home option, is on May 3 after both services.
Every summer, we also organize a UU & friends Habitat Women+ Build team to support this popular annual event that brings together more than 300 women to finance and build two homes. On June 9, this year’s community-wide Women+ Build kicks off. Team leader Barb Berggoetz, task force chair, will recruit about 35 women from UU and the community to build on a day in September. Each builder needs to donate and/or raise $300 to participate. Support for these builders is appreciated!
While we believe it’s important to provide funds to Habitat and to other housing-related efforts, we also work to educate the congregation on local housing issues and to provide opportunities for congregants to build. In addition to the Women+ Build, we typically organize two or more UU group Habitat builds annually.
A group of congregants will help frame a house in Osage Place on Saturday, May 16. In addition, a group of UU parents will do landscaping and planting there. If you’d like to participate, please email Barb Berggoetz using this contact form. Funds are not needed to participate in any build, except the Women+ Build.
Supporting the mission of Habitat for Humanity of Monroe County, founded in 1988, is one way our congregation contributes to the community’s overall well-being and to providing safe, decent places for people to live who may otherwise not be able to afford their own homes. Habitat builds an average of eight to tenhomes each year, with the help of many volunteers and community partners. To date, nearly 900 people have been housed in more than 250 Habitat homes.
In Osage Place, Habitat’s third neighborhood, 30 homes were completed in 2021 and 2022, and 39 additional homes are being built over the next few years. All who qualify for the Habitat program do so based on their need for housing, ability to pay a mortgage, and willingness to partner. Adult family members must complete 250 hours of volunteering, called sweat equity, before closing on their homes.
Through volunteer labor and tax-deductible donations of money and materials, Habitat houses are sold to future homeowners and financed with affordable loans. As homeowners pay back affordable mortgages, the funds are reinvested in Habitat’s operations to offer more families opportunities for homeownership.
The task force meets most months of the year, usually the first Sunday, between services and after the second service when UU switches to one service. We welcome new members and encourage UU congregants to participate in any way that fits their schedules, whether it’s participating in builds, fundraisers or other activities.
To learn more about the local Habitat for Humanity, visit its site at: www.monroecountyhabitat.org.
Barb Berggoetz
Habitat Task Force Chair
