Habitat For Humanity: 25 years and counting

YAKIMA, WASH. -- Beam by beam. Bolt by bolt. Wall by wall.

Yakima Valley Partners Habitat for Humanity has been building homes -- and fulfilling dreams -- for 25 years.

The nonprofit, nondenominational Christian organization helps local low-income families become homeowners through no-interest loans and "sweat equity."

"It's a big milestone," says volunteer coordinator Brian Campfield. "We want to focus on the great things Habitat has been able to do in the Valley."

Since its inception, the organization -- part construction company, part mortgage business, part fundraising enterprise, part ministry -- has completed 128 homes in 11 communities from Yakima to Prosser, sheltering more than 750 people.

And four more Yakima homes are in the works.

"After 25 years and (128) houses, it's easy to think these houses come easy," says Steve Luten, the new executive director for Yakima Valley Partners Habitat for Humanity. He took the reins last month. "But each house represents a significant amount of sacrifice and hard work. Each house is a miracle."

Families work alongside volunteers, investing 500 hours of labor into building the house that will become their home. The goal, Luten says, is to build five or six homes in Yakima County per year. Ultimately, he hopes to increase that number to 10 per year.

"We feel that our homeowners are leaders in their communities, leaders on their block, in terms of the investment and upkeep on their homes," Luten says. "We set the pace for what a house in the neighborhood can look like."

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Habitat's goal is to provide safe, decent and affordable shelter for families who earn 30 to 60 percent of the county's median income. For a family of four -- two parents and two children -- that's $15,800 on the low end and up to $27,000 on the high end, according to office manager Linda Allen, who's been involved with Habitat since its early days.

"When I started working here, we were at 17 houses," she says.

Twenty years ago, she was the organization's first paid employee. Since then, she and her husband, Paul, have served on the group's board of directors.

Through Habitat, families buy their homes with zero percent interest. Their monthly mortgage payment goes into a revolving fund to help cover the construction of more Habitat houses in the Yakima Valley.

Alex Magaña grew up in a Habitat house on South Seventh Street in Yakima. His parents, Jesus and Clementina, both 56, still live there.

"They built the house when I was 1," says their son, a 2007 graduate of Eisenhower High School. His older brother, 27 and living in Portland, also grew up in the house.

Alex Magaña is 20 now, finishing up his second year at Yakima Valley Community College and hoping to transfer to Central Washington University. He wants to become a middle school English or history teacher.

His parents, a fruit warehouse worker and an orchard manager, have paid off their mortgage.

"They don't owe anything on it," Alex Magaña says, adding, "We have pictures around here of when they were building the house. Now and again we see the people that helped us build the house, and we thank them every time. If I could, I would give them back a million times more than what they gave us. It's a really great program. It's a great blessing."

A typical Habitat home in Yakima County takes about three months to complete and costs an average of $94,000. The floor plan for a three-bedroom house stretches just over 1,000 square feet. The four-bedroom model encompasses just over 1,200-square feet.

Luten, the executive director, says Habitat's "focus is a hand up, not a handout. We involve friends and family, and that's intentional. We're strengthening that whole network of support."

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And families aren't the only ones putting in hours.

Volunteers come from around the Northwest to help build Habitat homes here. Some church and school groups make the trip an annual tradition, helping during spring break or summer vacation each year.

Habitat is primarily funded through donations, grants and the nonprofit's ReStore, a retail shop that sells new and used donated building materials and home improvement supplies, such as windows, doors, paint, hardware and recycled lumber. The store is at 202 W. Mead Ave., a couple blocks from Habitat's headquarters at 21 W. Mead Ave.

ReStore's income accounts for about a third of Habitat's $350,000 annual operating budget, according to Luten, noting that administrative costs are kept low at 15 percent.

The international Habitat organization was founded in Georgia in 1976. Today, more than 300,000 homes have been built worldwide through the nonprofit, sheltering more than 1.5 million people. There are more than 2,100 affiliates in about 100 countries.

Locally, Luten says, the success rate is high; only 2 to 3 percent of recipients have foreclosed on their homes.

The need for adequate housing remains high. Last fall, more than 100 Yakima-area families applied for the program. Another 75 or so applied in the Lower Valley.

"Many of the children have never had a room of their own," says Luten, who hopes to raise awareness of the organization during his tenure. "I would like to see us better known in the community."

* Adriana Janovich can be reached at 577-7653 or ajanovich@yakimaherald.com.

Quick Facts

* Founded as Buena Partners in 1984 by Fred and Pam Bauman.

* Became an affiliate of Habitat International in 1985.

* Completed first home in Toppenish in 1986.

* Changed name to Yakima Valley Partners Habitat for Humanity in 1986.

* Provided shelter for more than 750 individuals in 128 completed homes in 11 communities from Yakima to Prosser.

* Added more than $10 million of additional housing value to local tax rolls.

-- Source: www.yakimahabitat.org. For more information, call 509-453-8077.

Habitat for Humanity

* Founded as Buena Partners in 1984 by Fred and Pam Bauman.

* Became an affiliate of Habitat International in 1985.

* Completed first home in Toppenish in 1986.

* Changed name to Yakima Valley Partners Habitat for Humanity in 1986.

* Provided shelter for more than 750 individuals in 128 completed homes in 11 communities from Yakima to Prosser.

* Added more than $10 million of additional housing value to local tax rolls.

-- Source: www.yakimahabitat.org. For more information,call 509-453-8077.

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