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Many Hands make Light Work! Volunteers from all walks of life, joined together this summer to help build a new home in Southport, New York. Men and Women from all over the county joined forces by painting, plumbing, hammering, and doing whatever was needed to complete this Habitat for Humanity home.
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More than 20 entrants constructed sweet structures for the 2010 Gingerbread House Competition of New York State. Proceeds & donations received from the event totaled over $5000 and were given to Chemung County Habitat for Humanity for our work in building real houses for less advantaged families in Chemung County. Thanks to organizers, sponsors, and participants in this great and creative event. |
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Tom Karski (right) presents Gary Sokolowski with a Chemung County Habitat for Humanity Award thanking Gary for his dedicated service to the organization. Gary served Habitat for 5 years as head of the Building Committee and also served as President for 3 of those years. Gary provided quality leadership for the board of director, and helped the organization build or remodel 4 homes in 5 years. Thanks, Gary, for all you’ve done to help Habitat for Humanity, our community, and the families who now have a home of their own.
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The United Nations has designated the first Monday of October every year as World Habitat Day. The idea is to reflect on the state of our towns and cities and the basic right of all to adequate shelter. It is also intended to remind the world of its collective responsibility for the future of the human habitat.
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Read more about World Habitat Day on the United Nations web site
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Chemung County Habitat for Humanity was once again the recipient of a very generous donation from Valu Home Centers. Board members Laura Bennett and Lisa Lilley attended a presentation ceremony at the Valu Home Centers location in Buffalo, where they received a check for $5898! Valu Home Centers sponsors a fund raising effort for Habitat for Humanity affiliates each year. Their strong support and commitment to our cause is fundamental to the work we do. We wish to extend our sincere gratitude and appreciation to our local Valu stores and all of the Value stores and customers who participated. Pictured is Bill Simon, Valu's Vice President of Operations, with Board Members Lisa Lilley (left) and Laura Bennett (right).
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Elmira Corning Regional Association of Realtors representatives - President Mike Hamilton, Ken Leath, and Bill Marks - recently presented a check for $16,390 to Habitat for Humanity. Chemung County Habitat for Humanity’s Secretary, Laura Bennett, and President, Steve Johnson, were on hand to receive the generous donation. The money was raised at a recent golf tournament sponsored by the Realtors. The annual event raises money that is split between the Chemung County and Steuben County Habitat for Humanity chapters. This year was a new high in dollars raised and each chapter benefited by receiving $8,195. Year after year, the Elmira Corning Regional Association of Realtors is one of the largest supporters of our organization. We can’t thank you enough as you “Help Build It!”
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Realtors from the Elmira-Corning Regional Board of Realtors, Inc. gathered on June 4, 2010 at Willow Creek Golf Club to raise money for Habitat for Humanity. Hundreds of Realtors and their friends showed up and among those in the field were Chemung County Habitat for Humanity’s own Lisa Lilly, John Hooper and Chemung County Habitat's President, Steve Johnson. Another local Habitat Board member, Laura Bennett, also attended but did not play. No one is sure what the final scores were or how many balls were lost during the days activities, but everyone had a great time and thousands of dollars were raised by the area’s Real Estate Agents. The money raised will go towards the building of new homes in the area for people who might otherwise not be able to own their own home. Many thanks go out to all who showed up in support of Habitat for Humanity!
Pictured is Chemung County Habitat President Steve Johnson, who was elected to office in April. Check out more pictures from the day on Flickr.
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The Board of Directors for Chemung County Habitat for Humanity wishes to extend our sincerest gratitude to Gary Sokolowski. Gary served as our President for the past four years. He dedicated countless hours to serving the housing needs of our Habitat families in the area. His expertise in the home-building and remodeling business was an invaluable asset to our Board and the families that we serve. From organizing build days to ordering supplies, Gary was a key person in our last three builds. We thank Gary for his time, talent and dedication to our cause and wish him well as he steps off our board and on to another avenue in his life.
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A devastating earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale struck near Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti, on January 12, 2010. On February 27, 2010, another devastating earthquake, measuring 8.8 on the Richter scale, hit near Concepción, Chile, the country’s second-largest metropolitan area, 200 miles southwest of Santiago, the country’s capital. Habitat for Humanity has well-established programs in both countries, working in Haiti for the past 26 years and in Chile for the past 12 years. Habitat is already hard at work in rebuilding efforts in Haiti and will also be working to repair and rebuild in Chile. Habitat’s ability to respond effectively to both disasters will require support from all of us: donors, volunteers, corporate partners and other community organizations. Information about Habitat International’s latest disaster response efforts in both countries and links to make a donation are available on the Habitat International web site: http://www.habitat.org/disaster/active_programs/.
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Maps of Haiti and Chile
Source: Central Intelligence Agency World Factbook: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/index.html
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The deadline to enter this year's gingerbread house competition is October 31st. The second annual Gingerbread House Competition of New York State will take place on November 14th at the Arnot Mall. All proceeds benefit Chemung County Habitat for Humanity. For more details, including how to enter, check out the contest web site: http://www.gingerbreadny.com/ . This was a hugely successful and fun event last year - consider entering, or at least attending, the contest! |
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Work on 75 Orchard Park is scheduled to be completed in November. All the trim is installed and for the most part painted, and installers worked to insulate the floor joists recently. The Tuesday crew will be installing toilets, sinks, and medicine cabinets shortly. The interior is slated to be completed by the first week in November. Remaining interior work includes: closet work, some bathroom paint work, door hardware, countertop, and carpet installation. The driveway will be installed soon.The completion of exterior yard work will depend on the weather.
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The work at 75 Orchard Park Road in Pine City is moving right along. Volunteers are building on Tuesdays and Saturdays. If individuals or groups are interested in volunteering, please fill out and submit the construction volunteer form on our Volunteer page.
There are some times when our volunteers work for days and weeks and very little visible progress. May 9th was not one of those times. We started with a painted sub-floor. At 8:00 a.m. the crane arrived and five minutes later the truck arrived with the wall panels. By noon, all of the walls were up!
Photos of the progress are now available on Flikr - check them out!
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Valu Home Centers sponsors a fund raising effort for Habitat for Humanity affiliates each year. Their strong support and commitment to our cause is fundamental in the work that we do. On August 10, 2009, they presented checks to area affiliates at their location in Buffalo, New York. Vicki Thompson and Laura Bennett represented our affiliate at the event. Chemung County Habitat for Humanity received $5561, and all of that will be used here in our community towards our projects. The grand total that Valu raised for Habitat affiliates this year was $175,012. We wish to extend our sincere gratitude and appreciation to our local Valu stores and all of the Value stores and customers who participated.
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Chemung County Habitat for Humanity's 19th home project is underway at 75 Orchard Park Road in Pine City. A class at GST BOCES has started work on framing the home. The official groundbreaking ceremony took place on April 10, 2009.
Traveler's Insurance is the major sponsor for this 2009 build, providing thousands of dollars for the construction and their staff members' talents in building and landscaping the property.
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Chemung County Habitat for Humanity's 19th home project was kicked off today with a groundbreaking ceremony at 10:00am. The site of our next build is 75 Orchard Park Road in Pine City.
Habitat Board members, local officials, volunteers, and sponsors, including a large contingent from Travelers Insurance, joined the new Habitat family at Friday's groundbreaking ceremony. Traveler's Insurance will be our major sponsor for this 2009 build, and announced their donation of $10,000 for the construction, plus their staff members' talent and time to participate in building and landscaping the property. Thank you, Travelers Insurance!
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The renovation at 72 Orchard Park is complete and the family has moved in! The formal dedication ceremony for 72 Orchard Park took place on Saturday, May 2, 2009 at 10:00 am. Chemung County Habitat for Humanity's Board members, volunteers, sponsors, local officials, and the Bayait family were present for the short home dedication ceremony and tour of the renovated home, which was completed last fall.
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The Elmira-Corning Board of Realtors recently presented Habitat board members with a check for over $15,000 - thank you for your continued support! |
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The 2008 Gingerbread Competition of the Twin Tiers took place on November 15, 2008 at the Arnot Mall in Horseheads. Thirty-two entrants created gingerbread houses while mall customers and other onlookers watched the exciting event. Over $1200 was raised for Chemung County Habitat for Humanity! More details and photos are available on the contest web site: http://www.twintiersgingerbreadhouse.com/ . |
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Volunteers from Travelers Insurance came out for a planting day at 72 Orchard Park. Together with the homeowner and board members, they distributed soil in the front and back yards, and planted shrubs. |
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Valu Home Centers runs a fundraising campaign for Habitat for Humanity chapters in the areas where their stores are located. Locally, the Valu Home Center on Broadway in Elmira raises funds for the Chemung County chapter. Among the fundraisers they hold, Valu raffles off chances to win a new car. On August 11, 2008, there was a celebration at the Valu Home Center in Amherst , NY (near Buffalo), where the checks were presented to the local Habitat chapters, and the winner was drawn for the car. |
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We acquired two properties on Orchard Park in the Town of Southport. One existing home needs complete renovation and the other is a lot with a slab from a former house fire. The properties are across the street from each other, in a quiet residential neighborhood. These recent donations seem to be very suitable for the families we have in mind.
We have begun remodeling 72 Orchard Park. A complete interior and exterior update will be performed on this National Home: from site work, removing trees and installing a driveway, to roofing, siding, replacement windows and a complete interior overhaul. Our goal is an energy-efficient updated home to welcome our new family. We anticipate a September 2008 completion date. Sheesley's Sewer Service has already donated materials and labor to install new plumbing throughout the home. In addition, Greater Southern Tier BOCES (GST BOCES) has committed to roofing and possibly re-siding the exterior in May. We are looking for additional corporate or church sponsors at this time, and will be looking for donations of both labor and materials to complete the rest of the home. Please call or e-mail if you are interested in helping us meet our goal.
Thank you Sheesley's Sewer Service and GST BOCES for your commitment on this project!
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