On Saturday, December 7, 2024, West Tuality Habitat’s four newest aspiring homeowners began their sweat equity for homes of their own, starting with a tool clinic by Brian Martin, our construction manager, on a very cold, wet morning at our Countryman estates site in Forest Grove, Oregon. Attendees learned about the most essential hand tools they will be using, as well as a brief introduction to some of the power tools they will use most. Tool belts and tool boxes were also discussed, as was what construction projects the group would work on together first.

Tis the season to give thanks, and so we are giving thanks for the groups of volunteers than have helped us in the last 12 months - employees from various companies, members of various community groups, and students from local schools. This blog profiles their contributions and offers information on how your group can volunteer with West Tuaity Habitat for Humanity at a half day event.

West Tuality Habitat for Humanity’s Habitat University event, All About Drywall, was a success, with participants learning the ins and outs of cutting and placing drywall, a skill that will be oh-so-useful when these same folks turn out to volunteer with us at Countryman Estates, our latest construction site that will house eight families.

For the first time since before the COVID-19 pandemic, West Tuality Habitat held a dinner event to honor its volunteers, recognizing two corporations who have had volunteers at our work sites multiple times in the last 12 months and awarding Presidential Service Awards (Gold level) to 21 volunteers. The event also honored President Jimmy Carter, the most famous Habitat for Humanity volunteer and who recently celebrated his 100th birthday.

A mother of two has moved into her new Habitat for Humanity home in Cornelius, Oregon, the first in West Tuality Habitat’s Rapid Homestead program. The home dedication event included West Tuality Habitat staff and volunteers, members of the new homeowners extended family, and Kari Summerall, a Residential Loan Officer from Banner Bank who assisted in helping with Leah’s mortgage.