Leaking roofs, clothes in boxes on the floor, no beds, plaster blistering and paint peeling, cockroaches and drafty windows; moving every few month to a new school; struggling to keep a job when someone in the family gets sick; living in unstable neighborhoods with a bleak outlook for the future.  In the richest county in Pennsylvania it is easy to overlook pockets of substandard housing, but there is need.  In April 1999, a coalition of housing providers in Montgomery county did an informal count and found 800 residents asking for help, including over 400 children, and an estimated 5,600 substandard houses.

Since 1989, Habitat for Humanity of Montgomery County has been tackling these issues at multiple levels.  We have built and rehabbed 37 homes that have given shelter to 146 people.  Right now we are working in two areas of Montgomery County: Norristown and Pottstown.  The new life for these houses has had an impact on the neighborhoods as a whole.  The borough of Norristown has noticed the difference and assisted the transformation by replacing the sidewalks in this area and planting trees along the street.  To ensure the continued safety of the homeowners and their families, we have held neighborhood meetings, assigned block captains, and met regularly with the local police.

We also provide services for our partner families (or potential homeowners) such as credit repair, budgeting classes, and the opportunity to partner with a sponsor for support.  Our homes are sold to our families at cost with a no-profit, no-interest mortgage which makes them affordable.  These payments go into a revolving fund to continue rehabbing other homes.  This means, part of our function is as a mortgage company.  We do so much more than just rehab houses.

There are numerous types of people involved in our mission to affect change.  Our families earn 30%-60% of the median income of the county and have no other way to provide their families a safe, decent home.  We have a diverse Board of Directors including local politicians, religious leaders, entrepreneurs, realtors, bankers, and social workers, hailing from all parts of Montgomery county.  Our volunteers come from congregations of all faiths; corporations such as Hilb Rogal & Hobbs, Univest, Merck, IKEA, Unisys, and Lockheed Martin; foundations such as Arcadia, William Penn, and the Montgomery County Foundation; schools such as Plymouth Whitemarsh, Methacton, Kennedy Kendrick, Boston College, Villanova, and Eastern University; and many individuals, many of which come on a regular basis.  These volunteers work and learn beside the partner families who put in 200 sweat-equity hours on-site (per adult signing the mortgage) before acquiring their home.  Together they gain the skills necessary to build and maintain a home.  Each take pride in the work that they have done, the partner family knowing they helped build their house with their own two hands and the volunteers having the opportunity to meet the people they are helping.

While we take the name Habitat for Humanity, we are a local, grassroots organization which receives funds from several sources, including the international headquarters of Habitat.  We have purchased a building on Cherry Street that serves as our office, a warehouse, a workshop, and a meeting space.  We currently have an Executive Director, a Director of Development, a Volunteer Coordinator, a Family Services Coordinator, a Bookkeeper, an Office Manager, a Construction Manager and several part-time site supervisors who teach and supervise the days we have volunteers.

There is still need for us in Montgomery county, Cherry Street alone has at least ten more condemned houses and the surrounding area has dozens more.  The dilapidated houses are here, the families in need are here, the workforce needed to build is here.

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