Habitat for Humanity Holds Wall Raising Celebration for Family’s New Home

This is one of three homes being built in partnership with single moms

WEST FARGO, N.D. — Habitat for Humanity held a wall–raising celebration at a house that will be a family’s new home come September.

Audrey Dominguez and her four kids are currently living in a mobile home, where she says things are always breaking no matter how much she tries to fix them.

“If it wasn’t for Habitat and the FM Realtors and Thompson Homes and everybody else, I don’t think we would’ve been able to get out of the struggle we’ve been living in— our trailer I honestly have fought for 6 years trying to fix up,” she said.

Dominguez’s home will be one of three that Habitat is building in partnership with single moms in the area.

“The Dominguez family, she’s been working very hard on trying to improve her own home. Which is one of the things we look for, is they have to make some effort into trying to find a traditional mortgage or fixing up the house they’re living in,” Pete Christopher, resource development and marketing manager for Habitat for Humanity, said.

Habitat says they provide a “hand up” instead of “hand out.”

“Habitat homes are not free homes. We go and raise money initially to build the homes, but our families repay the cost of the construction back to Habitat which helps us fund the next house and the next house,” Christopher said.

All Habitat for Humanity homeowners are required to take part in the building of their own house by putting in 250 sweat equity hours.

“The majority of that comes from actually building their own home, working side by side with our volunteers and our staff, to put up walls, do the drywall, to do basically everything in their home,” Christopher said.

“I like doing muscle labor. I’m excited. I’m excited to help the other ladies with their builds too. It’s going to be fun,” Dominguez said.

When the house is done, Dominguez says she wants to “have all my family over and have a big cookout.”

Habitat says 95 percent of the work on the house is done with volunteers, but subcontractors do help with parts like electrical and plumbing, often at a lower cost or for free.