Brown County Habitat for Humanity planning future growth
NASHVILLE, Ind. (Brown County Democrat) — Brown County Habitat for Humanity is celebrating its coral anniversary — 35 years serving the county.
“Habitat for Humanity in Brown County began with a house for a family of four in 1990,” affiliate executive director Jim Snider said. “Since that time, we have been blessed to build 23 homes and have just begun our 24th. There is a real, significant need for affordable housing in Brown County. The Indiana Uplands Study of 2023 found that we would need 124 homes valued at $250,000 or less in Brown County by 2030 just to keep up with the demand.”
Snider said that while Habitat cannot handle that completely on their own, they do have the capacity to build three new homes every year.
“We are working with a variety of organizations to help increase our capabilities while providing more value to the community,” Snider said. “Just a few of those plans include the development of a Habitat ReStore along the State Road 46 East corridor, expansion of our Brush with Kindness program and eventually the addition of a full-time development coordinator to help ensure long-term success of the affiliate for decades to come.”
Before 2020, there were around 62 Habitat for Humanity affiliates in the entire state, but today that number has dropped to 42. “In that small space of time, we have lost nearly one-third of them,” Snider said.
Brown County’s affiliate is currently helping with the dissolution of Jackson County Habitat for Humanity because they were no longer able to sustain operations.
“Back in 2019 or 2020, the Habitat for Humanity in Shelby County realized the same fate,” Snider said. “People automatically want to attribute this to COVID-19, and I understand that, but it’s not the case. Yes, the pandemic was an aggravating cause to those over 20 affiliates being forced to permanently shutter their operations, but it was not the primary cause for the vast majority of them. Habitat for Humanity affiliates, no matter how large or how small, rely heavily on their team of volunteers to come alongside them and build homes, make critical repairs to existing homes and revitalize communities. There simply isn’t an affiliate out there that has the staffing, budget and experience necessary to do it entirely themselves without volunteers. We truly mean it when we say that our volunteers and donors are the lifeblood of Habitat for Humanity in Brown County and across the globe.”
Snider shared a memory of meeting a woman with a special connection to the organization who volunteered with her daughter, “Her family used to bring her to build sites when she was younger,” Snider said. “Her in-laws were involved in Habitat as well. On that day, her daughter told me how she remembers fondly being on job sites with her mom and grandfather. You cannot put a value on that kind of legacy.”
Brown County’s affiliate only has two paid employees, everyone else involved is a volunteer. Because of the tremendous support they have received from community members, Habitat for Humanity has been able to keep up with its goal of building three houses per year. “Our dream is to find a larger parcel of land, perhaps 10 to 20 acres, and over the next handful of years build a close-knit neighborhood on that property,” Snider said. “We want people to have at least an acre for each home, but in some cases, as much as 2 to 3 acres depending on surveys and other factors.
“These homes are investments in the long-term success of the families we partner with, our schools and businesses and the community as a whole. So, as a result, we build safe, efficient and attractive homes and make them affordable through a variety of partnerships and subsidies. But, without financial support, we cannot purchase the land and materials needed to turn the dreams of homeownership into a reality.”
Habitat for Humanity is always looking for local support. “Donations are always welcome no matter the month,” Snider said. “We are able to put them to good use almost immediately.”
In addition to volunteering, there are many ways people can support the affiliate including two annual events, the Pie Auction and the Building Dreams Dinner.
“Both of these are in the fall and we want to do some fun things with the community at other times during the year,” Snider said. “We are currently looking at doing a golf outing in the spring or early summer. This is very preliminary, but we feel like it is an excellent opportunity to engage with donors and volunteers while helping to create opportunities for local businesses at the same time.”
Cars for Homes is a program through Habitat International that allows people to donate vehicles they no longer need, trailers and construction, farm and power sports equipment to Habitat in Brown County. The items will be towed for free and all proceeds directly benefit the local affiliate.
For information on Cars for Homes and other ways to support the local chapter, visit the affiliate’s website at www.browncountyhabitat.org.
“We also have a program called the Attainable Homeownership Tax Credit (AHTC) through the state,” Snider said. “This allows individuals, businesses and civic organizations to make contributions to us to support our mission. Fifty percent of the donation is eligible for a tax credit on their state of Indiana taxes for that tax year. The maximum allowable contribution per donor is $20,000 per tax year, earning the donor a healthy $10,000 tax credit!
“For 2024, this program has allowed us to generate around $30,000 in new donations.”
People interested in the AHTC website can call the Habitat for Humanity office at (812) 988-4926 for more information or visit the office, 646 Memorial Road, Nashville, IN 47448 to make a donation by check, money order or card.
“Fortunately, because we live in one of the greatest communities in the state, Brown County has always been blessed with an outpouring of generosity and support,” Snider said. “We have a strong, dedicated core group of volunteers that make sure we are able to serve the community.”
This article originally appeared in the Brown County Democrat.
