SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY – Despite the dreary weather on Friday, the mood was cheerful as local organizations, public officials and community members came together to celebrate the Meyre family’s move into their new home.
Brenda Meyre said she felt overwhelmed but was excited to move into her new home with her children, Rebecca and Keith Cherney. She called it “perfect,” both in terms of location and layout.
“I’ve reserved a truck and we’re going to start tonight. I want to start tonight,” Meyre said as she stood on her porch, looking at her new road. “My adrenaline is at 1,000, it’s been like that all week.”
Making this local family’s dream of homeownership a reality was largely thanks to Habitat for Humanity in northern Saratoga, Warren and Washington counties, which built the home and presented it to the Meyre family at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday.
“They’ve been working on this for a long time,” said George Earle, executive director of Habitat for Humanity of Northern Saratoga, Warren and Washington Counties. “It’s exciting for them and for us that it’s finally finished and they’re ready to get started. We’ll close this afternoon and then it’ll officially be theirs.”
Habitat for Humanity’s mission is to bring people and organizations together to build homes, communities, and hope, with a vision to create a world where everyone has a decent place to live. According to their annual report for fiscal year 2023, in 2023, Habitat for Humanity helped more than 13.4 million people build or improve the place they call home, and more than 9.5 million people improved their housing conditions through the nonprofit’s training and advocacy.
In addition to all the hard work and dedication Habitat for Humanity put into building this home, it would not have been possible without the charitable donations from Curtis Lumber’s Leap of Kindness Day campaign.
Leap of Kindness Day was an initiative by Todd Shimkus, president of the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce, aimed at getting others to use their extra day during a leap year to do something kind for someone else. Inspired by this, Curtis Lumber has turned the original day into a month-long event where people who shop at their stores can donate a piece of lumber, which is then donated to Habitat for Humanity and used in the homes they build.
“We at Curtis Lumber have been very fortunate to be able to participate in many of these projects in a variety of capacities, whether it be Make-A-Wish or Habitat for Humanity, but seeing the finished product is always a goosebumps moment,” said Sales Manager Dan Nelson. “Curtis Lumber is a local family business with communities all over the world, we have 23 locations and it is one of our core values as a company to make sure we are involved in our communities and help where we can.”
Shimkus said that when Leap of Kindness Day was launched in 2016, the hope was that it would not just be about buying the next person in line a coffee, but that it would have a bigger impact.
“I can’t think of anything more amazing than seeing a family get their first home in this beautiful community,” Shimkus said. “Curtis Lumber has really stepped up. They’ve built five homes in the last five years using Leap of Kindness Day lumber and are now doing Leap of Kindness February as a result of their first outreach. The support is just incredible – and Habitat (for Humanity) of course has support in the community. They work with so many local businesses to make this possible – but that’s what this community is all about.”
“Leap of Kindness Day has grown from about 50 communities in 2016 to over 250 in 2024, and plans for 2028 are already underway.”
The project also would not have been possible without the kindness of the Meyres’ new neighbor, Willard Chamberlin, who donated part of his property to Habitat for Humanity so the three-bedroom, two-bathroom home could be built.
The Meyre family home was the 30th home completed by Habitat for Humanity in northern Saratoga, Warren and Washington counties, and there’s no slowing down in sight. Earle shared that Habitat for Humanity owns properties in Hudson Falls, Glens Falls and Queensbury, and that there are progressively larger plans for each of those properties.
For more information about Habitat for Humanity of Northern Saratoga, Warren & Washington Counties, visit their website at https://glensfallshabitat.org or their Instagram and Facebook pages.
1 from 4
Expand
Originally published:
