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Legacy Church House And Unity House IV Opening Ceremony

Now we will have a place to call home

Habitat for Humanity’s global mission seeks to put God’s love into action by bringing people together to build homes, communities and hope. Here in Albuquerque, the faith based community has supported Habitat builds for decades – designating funds to pay for construction, providing lunches, volunteering and raising awareness about the need for affordable housing.

On Saturday September 7th, representatives from various faith communities alongside Habitat volunteers, staff, board members and families came together to celebrate the beginning of two new homes and welcome two future homeowners into the Habitat family.

This year Legacy Church joined Habitat’s mission by sponsoring an affordable home – the Legacy Church House. Contributing $100,000 as well as volunteering at the build site, the congregation is putting their faith into action. “At Legacy Church living generously is not just something we say, it’s who we are,” said Pastor Steve Smothermon. “So we are excited to partner with Habitat for Humanity in a transformational way to help a family experience the joy of home ownership.”

Habitat's Legacy Church House opening ceremony
Thank you Legacy Church for partnering with Habitat to make home possible for Veronica’s family.

During the opening ceremony, Executive Pastor Kraig Shorter said, “One of the things that we believe is that everyone deserves to be treated with kindness and respect. In our community today, hope is a scarce commodity, but it’s through things like what we are gathered to do today that we will watch hope rise and we will change people’s lives through love and action, not just words.”

The second home, Unity House IV, is made possible through a collaboration of faith groups. “With 1 in 8 New Mexico households unable to afford a decent place to live, partnering with like-minded organizations and collaborating with communities of faith who are dedicated to making a difference is critical to making home-ownership a reality for more families,” said Joan Costello, Executive Director of Greater Albuquerque Habitat for Humanity.”

During the opening ceremony Phil, a volunteer SWAT member and representative from St. Andrew Presbyterian Church, said, “One of my favorite people in the world is St. Francis of Assisi who said ‘the deeds that you do may be the only sermon you hear.’ All the houses right here are sermons to our community and the work we do. Thank you to each and every one of you for adding your voice to that sermon.”

Habitat Unity IV House opening ceremony
Thank you to the diverse faith community in Albuquerque for sponsoring Unity House IV and helping build a home for Martin and Christine’s family.

Martin and Christine and their four children are the future homeowners of the Unity House IV. During the ceremony for his family’s first home Martin said, “Since I was little I moved from one refugee camp to another, until we moved here in 2007. God bless the United States for accepting our application for resettlement. In our culture, in Africa, to have land and a house is a privilege that makes you feel like you are human. Now we will have a place to call home and next year our address will be right here. Thank you so much. God bless America.”

child with shovel during Habitat opening ceremony
Unity House IV and Legacy Church House ground breaking and opening ceremony on September 7, 2019

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