HYP - Build it with Bushels

Thank you all for coming out to the Third Annual Habitat Young Professionals Oyster Roast on Thursday, February 23, 2012! We had a great turn-out of over 60 people and were able to raise over $1,000.00 for Sea Island and East Cooper Habitat for Humanity! We would like to give a BIG thank you to Rita’s Seaside Grill, The Rusty Hook Ramblers, Crosby’s Seafood, Jamie Westendorff and all the HYP committee members for making this event such a big success. We
look forward to seeing you at next event!

Habitat Kids’ Christmas Party

Sea Island Habitat for Humanity staff, volunteers, and homeowners welcomed Santa Clause to the Habitat office on December 15, 2011 for the 3rd Annual Habitat Kids’ Christmas Party. Over 80 children came to the party and each child was greeted by Santa and given a gift. The conference room at Sea Island Habitat office literally bounced with the energy of excited children and their parents.

Guests enjoyed refreshments and a number of Christmas crafts: making paper chains, tree decorations, and thankful hand outlines. Local volunteers and college students from Ohio State and North Western helped with craft activities, Santa’s workshop, serving refreshments, and leading games outside. Thanks to donations of gifts, cookies, decorations, and a lot of volunteer time, we had a wonderful party. The students of Porter Gaud School donated two carloads of beautiful gifts to the party, collected during their toy drive. Sea Island Habitat Board members and other donors also brought in gifts for the children. The Christmas Party planning committee members decorated the space and a group of ladies from Seabrook made 25 DOZEN cookies for the party.

It was heartwarming to experience the true spirit of Christmas and the holiday season with children from Habitat families made possible by the generosity of volunteers and donors. We hope to host the event again next year.

The House that Jack Built by Priscilla Quirk

The HOUSE THAT JACK BUILT, in honor of Jack Hostutler, is a SIHH project on James Island that is generating much excitement among habitat supporters. Over 130 donations have come in over the last 14 months, and it is a special build that is near and dear to the hearts of many Board members, family members and volunteers. In November Lib Hostutler and I went out to the Green Valley Lane construction site to see where Jack’s house will be constructed. The HOUSE THAT JACK BUILT is our special build for Martin Luther King Day and framing will begin on January 16, 2012.

Above is a photo of Lib on the construction site at Green Valley Lane.

Shop ‘Til You Drop

Get your pocketbooks ready and come join us for the second annual “Finders Keepers” upscale clothing resale event! For two days only (Thursday April 28th and Friday April 29th), Sea Island Habitat for Humanity will transform the Berkeley Electric multi purpose room into a resale boutique selling dresses, silk blouses, sports clothes, and more—all to benefit the 2011 Women Build home.

“We are so excited to be hosting such fabulous event,” says Anne Randall, Volunteer Coordinator for SIHH. “Ginny Larence of Kiawah Island and several other ladies have been recruiting donations, and we have received some great items so far—pants, coats, beautiful blouses, purses and more. And with all the proceeds from the sale going directly towards the Women Build home, you can feel good about shopping since your purchases will be helping the Women Build family become first-time homeowners!”

Sea Island Habitat has been helping families in the Lowcountry become first-time homeowners since 1978 and has been able to help over 270 families since its start. Every spring, SIHH hosts a project called Women Build, which brings together women from all walks of life to address poverty housing by funding and building a Habitat home for a deserving family. This year’s Women Build home will cost approximately $60,000 to construct, with building commencing April 30th - May 7th, 2011 and running until the home is completed. All of the proceeds from the “Finders Keepers” sale will go directly towards funding the Sea Island Habitat Women Build project.

The sale will take place at Berkeley Electric multi purpose room (3351 Maybank Highway, Johns Island, SC 29455) on Thursday April 28th from 11-2pm and 4-7pm and the again on Friday April 29th from 11-2pm and 4-7pm. With racks upon racks of handbags, scarves, blouses, pants, skirts and more, shoppers will be able to find something truly unique—at a great price and for a great cause!

Collegiate Challenge

For the last five weeks the construction site has been hosting college groups from all over the United States who are participating in Collegiate Challenge. Collegiate Challenge is a year round alternative break program that offers groups of five or more participants, 16 years of age and older, the opportunity to visit one of Habitat host affiliates throughout the United States. The groups that have been coming to work with Sea Island Habitat for Humanity this year have been doing a wonderful job building the newest SIHH home design,. As of now, two homes are that the stage of having the interior doors and trim installed, two more are being framed, and yet two more are having their foundations built. The pace of construction has really picked up, with an average of 30 volunteers a week, but the construction staff has guided this raw enthusiasm to ensure the highest level of quality in all that we build. All of our new homes will be Earth craft certified and Energy Star compliant. Our local volunteers that regularly come out have been a huge help to the construction staff. The regular volunteers are able to help not only with construction labor but also with assisting as small team leaders on a number of tasks. There is an exciting energy on site, and it truly is contagious!

Students Travel to Trident-Area Habitat for Humanity Affiliates During Spring Break

Students from over twenty high schools, colleges and universities will be coming to the Lowcountry this spring to help families obtain simple, decent and affordable housing. The students are participants in Habitat’s national alternative break program, Collegiate Challenge, and will be volunteering with Charleston, East Cooper and Sea Island Habitat for Humanity affiliates.

“This is our fifteenth time hosting students during their spring break and we are appreciative of their efforts,” said Anne Shaffer Myers, Sea Island Habitat’s Volunteer Coordinator. “The work these students will do during their spring break will have a lasting impact in our community.”

The students are visiting from twenty different schools in fifteen different states, plus one school from Canada. They will volunteer from February 21- April 2 and will work on various different projects with the affiliates including new home construction and critical repair, weatherization and Brush with Kindness projects. The participating schools include the following:

• Northeastern
• William and Mary
• Wake Forest
• Georgetown
• NYU
• Siena College
• Centre College
• St. Olaf College
• University of Delaware
• Vanderbilt University
• St. Ambrose University
• Centre College
• University of Delaware
• McMaster University
• Villanova University
• Eastern Kentucky University
• Keene State College
• Minnesota State University
• Elmhurst College
• Cathedral High School
• Castleton College

For the past 22 years, more than 182,000 students have spent their school breaks volunteering across the country through this Habitat for Humanity program. Habitat’s Collegiate Challenge is one of the many programs Habitat has to engage youth ages 5 to 25 in Habitat’s work. Since 2007, State Farm has served as the national corporate sponsor of Habitat for Humanity’s youth programs, with a sponsorship commitment of more than $1.1 million in grants each year. Additionally, State Farm offices contribute more than $500,000 annually to Habitat affiliates across the United States. For more information on current Lowcountry local projects please contact Molly Coffey.