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. 

On Saturday, July 23, 2022, we dedicated the 16th home built by St. Laurence volunteers and sponsored with St. Laurence donations.  A family of four, with one of them disabled, will be soon moving into an affordable, safe, home replacing the substandard conditions they have had to endure since Hurricane Harvey.

In January 2023, we will begin our 17th home.  This will be in a new, Habitat development in Richmond.  Eventually, Hope Lane will contain 15 Habitat homes.

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 will start has been funded.  But we plan to start another home in Hope Lane in the Fall of 2023.  Continuous funding is needed for our ministry to continue this work. You 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 currently $70,000 and is likely to increase as buidling costs go up.

A second way to contribute is time, which can come in different forms.  The build days are primarily on Saturday and, weather dependent, happen 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 have been supplied by different St. Laurence Ministry groups and parishioners.

And last, but not least, please pray for our volunteers and for our partner families that we can continue this work in good health and safely.

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 our next project.

Hurricane Harvey Recovery

It is hard to believe that it is almost five years since Hurricane Harvey.  St. Laurence volunteers plunged into the "muck and gut work" and then postponed new home building to work with various local agencies, to help hurricane victims find funding and then to schedul the work of rebuilding their homes.  We helped rebuild at least 13 homes. Although recovery efforts are slowing down, as recently as the summer of 2021 some of our volunteers helped a non-profit agency, Attack Poverty, in building a small replacement home for a home that was destroyed by Harvey.  And as mentioned above, our latest Habitat homeowner was forced into substandard housing by Harvey.