Habitat for Humanity

New Home Construction

Saint Paul advises (Eph. 4:28) but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his hands, so that he may be able to give to those in need. There are numerous other biblical passages that encourage corporal and spiritual works of mercy. At Saint Laurence we are blessed with over 100 different ministries that allow us to live out the gospel.  Habitat for Humanity, under the Social Concerns Ministry, presents one such opportunity.
Habitat for Humanity is a worldwide organization that partners with people in their community to help build or improve a place to call home. Habitat homeowners help build their home alongside volunteers and pay an affordable mortgage. St. Laurence is one such partner here in Fort Bend County that provides funding and volunteers in constructing a home.  This fall, Saint Laurence will embark on constructing its 16^th family home.  The new homeowners are a family of four with one of them disabled. They are currently living in substandard conditions after having been displaced by Hurricane Harvey from their prior rental home. They are anxious to move into an affordable, safe, home which Habitat for Humanity will allow them to do.  
As a parishioner, there are several ways you can contribute to the effort.   The first is through financial support.. Due to the generous support of our parishioners the home we have started has been funded.  But we plan to start another home in Spring 2022 and fundraising for this home is underway.  ou can place a check in the collection basket or mail a check to the parish office made out to St. Laurence (write Habitat for Humanity in the note Section).  You can also contribute one-time or monthly through Faith Direct.  The cost for sponsorship of a single home is $70,000 and the 15 homes built previously have been supported through individual parishioner generosity.  
A second way to contribute is time, which can come in different forms.  The build days are primarily on Saturday and weather dependent happens over a 3-to-4-month period. You can come as an individual, family (over 16 years old) or parish group and at a pace that fits your schedule. No special experience is necessary and all the tools, material and supervisory is provided by Habitat.  This is where discipleship and fellowship come to fruition. You will work alongside fellow parishioners, the homeowner and other volunteers from the Fort Bend area.  Finally, there is a need for lunches to be provided for the workers which in the past has been supplied by different St. Laurence Ministry groups and parishioners.
A final note of gratitude for the tremendous support the Habitat Ministry has received from the Saint Laurence community over the years, as we carry out the honest work with our hands as St. Paul commanded.

Go to the SignUps page for information on how to register to work on this project.

Hurricane Harvey Recovery

Shortly after Hurricane Harvey hit our area, volunteers from St. Laurence Habitat began to help area homeowners “Muck and gut” their homes.  This is the process of removing flood damaged items, flooring, sheetrock, etc.  and getting the home ready for rebuilding.  We worked with other local agencies and cleaned out 24 homes.
 
As we finished this initial phase of recovery, we realized that many of these homeowners were facing a long period without a place to live.  We decided to postpone our new home building program for 2017-2018 and concentrate our efforts on this critical housing need.  Again, working with various local agencies, we helped hurricane victims find funding and then scheduled the work of rebuilding their homes.  To date, we have helped rebuild at least 13 homes.

Currently, some of our volunteers are also helping a non-profit agency, Attack Poverty, in building a small replacement home for a home that was in poor shape and then destroyed by Harvey.  If you are on our email list you will receive signup invites.  If you are interested, contact Steve Pondell.