From staff reports
Eleven low-to-moderate income families have moved into their new homes following the Dedication and Key Presentation Ceremony ending Habitat Birmingham’s 2015 Home Builders Blitz. The ceremony took place May 7 at the build site in Clay.
Special guest was Tom Gipson, founder and national builder chair for Habitat Humanity’s Home Builders Blitz.
“As I visit the Home Builders Blitz sites in all the national events, I take great pride in witnessing the commitment and joy of professional builders — many of them working with Habitat for the first time — and of the volunteers, homeowner families and Habitat staff,” he said.
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Eleven families in Clay are now living new homes, thanks to Habitat Birmingham’s 2015 Home Builder Blitz.
Participating home builders included: AGH Homes, Bluestone Building, Compass Home Builders, Drake Homes, Embassy Homes, Habitat Birmingham, Harris Doyle Homes, Murphy Home Builders, Taylor Burton Company, Thoroughbred Homes, and Wright Homes.
Taylor Burton, immediate past president of the Alabama Homebuilders Association, has experienced both personal and business benefits from participating in Home Builders Blitz.
“I love the blitz,” he said. “It’s a great way to do something that just really makes you feel good when you get done. There’s nothing about it that’s easy. “It’s hard work for a week, it’s at times stressful for a week, but it’s the most fun stress you’ll ever have.”
President and CEO of Habitat for Humanity Greater Birmingham Charles Moore said, “The Home Builders Blitz significantly increases our capacity in the production of new homes and our ability to meet the quality affordable housing needs of more families. We would have to add at least two additional full-time staff to get done what this one-week blitz build does for us. The Home Builders Blitz also increases our relationships with the builders, contractors and construction material suppliers in our community.”
Community sponsors of the 2015 Home Builders Blitz included: Wells Fargo, Alabama Housing Finance Authority, Larry and Karen Norris, Alabama Power, Mortgage Bankers Association of Alabama, Greater Birmingham Association of Home Builders and MERSCorp. Other community partners and material contributors were: Bancorp South, Dave Condon PC, Aliant Bank, Fidelity (Lion) Bank, Jones Stephens, Absolute Concrete, Alabama Brick, New Core Steel, and Huggins Sod Farm.
“Owning my own home will positively change my family’s life, because we will finally have a place to truly call home,” said Shalinda Bilups, one of the new homeowners. “We will feel safe in our home and sleep well through the night. My family and I thank you from the bottom of our hearts for making this dream become a reality.”
