The future is even better, they say
Habitat For Humanity of Henderson officials are “elated” with the position the organization is in at the end of 2024, a year in which six Habitat homes were closed on.
“We feel incredibly blessed to do the work we do,” said Britney Smith, the executive director for the local Habitat.
It’s also meaningful when taking into account the extreme need for housing not only in Henderson but all over the nation, she said.
With the six houses that were closed on in 2024, the local Habitat has built 85 houses in its 34 years of existence, said Matt Reynolds, the chief operating officer.
“I’m elated at where we’re at,” Reynolds said.
He said when he began working for Habitat in 2012, the board hoped that the organization would be able to build one house each year. At the time, it was building one house every 18 months, he said.
He commended all in the organization, plus generous people in the community and partners in city and county government and civic groups for assistance in making this happen.
“It’s like a dream,” he said.
And building is only going to increase. For example, the organization is currently working on five homes and is set to break ground on two more in March, Reynolds said.
How many more homes Habitat constructs from July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026, will be determined at the March board meeting, Reynolds said.
Any way you slice it, though, the organization is nearing its 100th house built, he said.
Other Habitat service areas with less than 50,000 people–as is Henderson–average about three homes built per year, Reynolds said. The pace of the local organization’s builds is “remarkable,” he said.
“We couldn’t have done it without the community support,” Smith said. She noted the human quality of the work—when a new homeowner can host her child’s birthday party or put up a Christmas tree in her new home. “The house has really become a home for these families,” she said.
According to Habitat, the new homes of 2024 and owners are:
- Michelle Poindexter is the homeowner of a hew home on Thompson Street. The home is a re-build after a fire destroyed it in July 2023. The new home was closed on in January.
- Brianna Carter closed on a new home on Powell Street in January.
- Travis Littrell and Lettie Viars closed on their home at on Oak Street on May 6.
- Whitney Howard closed on her home on Powell Street on May 24.
- Caitlin Walker’s home on Pringle Street was dedicated on Nov. 15.
- Sierra Parkman’s home on Burris Street was dedicated on Nov. 22.
