News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Cindy Sproat and Danielle Fougere cutting cake in celebration of completion of work on their homes.
Danielle Fougere and Cyrik Jacob cutting the ribbon at her home on Cowboy Street.
Sisters Habitat for Humanity is known for constructing new- and they've built a lot of them.
But they also do home repairs for qualifying families, and they've "recycled" a few as well. The chapter celebrated one home repair and one recycle last weekend.
The chapter repaired the home of Cindy Sproat on Maple Street. According to Marie Clasen of Sisters Habitat, the work consisted of replacing drywall and skirting and work on windows.
The project was made possible by a grant from Thrivent Financial for Lutherans.
"It's for people who own a home but aren't able to maintain their home due to economics," Clasen said. "It's a payback program very much like the home ownership program."
Clasen said that the qualification requirements are the same for a repair loan as they are for Habitat homeowners, offering a zero-interest, no-profit loan. In this case , the loan should be paid off in a year-and-a-half.
The "recycling" project refurbished the home of the late Kathy Pittman, which was purchased by Danielle Fougere, representing the 52nd family to buy a Habitat home in Sisters.
According to Clasen, seven homes have been resold though this program.
"It's basically been people who have moved out of the area for a job or something like that," Clasen said.
It's not been a question of families not being able to make it.
"The mortgages are so affordable that even people who have been laid off for a while have been able to keep up with their mortgage," said Clasen, who also noted that there have been mortgage assistance programs available for people who have lost jobs in the recession.
Two more homes are on the docket for construction. Clasen reported that high school construction students have completed framing on both.
"We're just waiting for the weather to stabilize to pour foundations," Clasen said.
For more information about Sisters Habitat for Humanity, call 541-549-1193.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
Reader Comments(0)