Habitat for Humanity at the fair
By ANDREA JOHNSON, Staff Writer ajohnson@minotdailynews.comArticle Photos
Sisters Abby Haugen, 8, and Katie, 6, of Bismarck pounded nails as fast as they could into a plywood board Wednesday at the North Dakota State Fair.
Abby emerged the winner of the nail-pounding contest. Her mom suggested that she had more power in her arms than her little sister.
The contest was fun for the girls, but Tom Weller, fleet manager, said the display also served a more important purpose. They're trying to get information out about all the good work that Habitat for Humanity and Thrivent Financial for Lutherans do.
The local Habitat for Humanity Northern Lights helps build one house per year in the Minot community. The family receiving the house applies for a no-interest loan through Thrivent Financial for Lutherans and must contribute hundreds of hours of what the organization calls "sweat equity" into building their house along with the help of volunteers. The family's monthly mortgage payments then go into a revolving Fund for Humanity to help with the construction of more houses.
Habitat for Humanity chapters help build houses for low-income families across the United States, including areas devastated by recent hurricanes, and in other countries. Applicants are chosen based on their ability to pay back the loan and their willingness to help build their own houses. As a result, families who wouldn't be able to afford their own houses otherwise are able to get into decent housing, said Weller.
The typical Habitat for Humanity House costs approximately $59,000 and would not exceed 1,050 square feet for a three-bedroom house, according to literature provided by the organization.
The group's exhibit at the fair includes a display in a 67-foot semi trailer of what substandard housing looks like, with leaky roofs, broken fixtures, exposed electrical wires, draftiness, or insect infestations, and what a new kitchen in the new house might look like in comparison. Visitors are given a lanyard with the story of one family served by the Habitat for Humanity project and are shown a video describing the group's efforts. Children can get free, temporary tattoos and people can participate in the nail-pounding contest. The display is located outside the All Seasons Arena on the fairgrounds and will be there throughout the North Dakota State Fair, said Weller, who is from Warsaw, Mo. Thrivent Financial provides funding for the mobile exhibit
