When a House Becomes a Home
Photo by Eugenia Jones
Kentucky Christian Baptist Fellowship volunteers and others who attended the celebration ceremony for McCreary County’s Extreme Build XII are pictured in front of this year’s newly constructed house.
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- Kentucky Christian Baptist Fellowship volunteers and others who attended the celebration ceremony for McCreary County’s Extreme Build XII are pictured in front of this year’s newly constructed house.
Volunteers worked diligently to complete this summer’s new house. Pictured to the right are Judy Redden and Roger Ball (McHDC) with the owner of this year’s home, Kimberly Powell.
Eager for the house they had constructed in just ten days to become home to a McCreary County grandmother and her two grandchildren, members of Christian Baptist Fellowship (CBF) happily handed the keys to the front door of the house to the new owner, Kimberly Powell, during a celebration ceremony on Saturday. Powell is a grandmother raising two beautiful children, Chloe and Tajah. The home they had been living in was too small for growing children, and Kimberly dreamed of giving the children a safe and comfortable environment in the coming years. By partnering with CBF Kentucky and other sponsors for McCreary County’s Extreme Build XII, Powell was able to realize her dream.
Organizers of this year’s event acknowledged they were initially concerned over a decrease in the number of volunteers who came forward to assist with the project. However, noting that God provides for need, the organizers breathed a sigh of relief as the right volunteers showed up just when they were needed-making this year’s Extreme Build one of the most successful.
As part of a rural poverty initiative known as CBF Together for Hope, Extreme Build seeks to improve the quality of housing in McCreary County one family at a time. For the past twelve summers, volunteers from Kentucky and other states have given their time, money, and energy to build a house for a family in McCreary County. The Powell home was the twelfth home built in McCreary.
Extreme Build homes are applied for and received at affordable rates by residents of McCreary County who otherwise could not qualify for a house. Recipients must attend home ownership classes as well as correct any past credit issues. Funding for the home is comprised of USDA loans, grants, donated funds, donated labor, and gifts in kind. The recipient is not required to pay a down payment, but they must buy a prepaid homeowners policy before the build begins.
Extreme Build XII was sponsored by CBF Kentucky, McCreary County Community Housing Development Corporation (McCHDO), Kentucky Highlands Investment Corporation, USDA Rural Development, and Southern Tier Housing Corporation. Churches, organizations, and individuals from across the state helped make McCreary County’s Extreme Build XII possible by providing food, labor, and other assistance.
