Bringing a new home to a deserving, hard-working family can make a world of difference. Now, imagine the impact of 27 new homes.
Help Build Hope, an outreach of CrossRoads Missions, will make that imagination reality next month when the frames for 27 homes will be built across Louisville, Kentucky, on May 19.
Rob Minton, the founder and director of CrossRoads, explained the build project will take place simultaneously at six different Southeast Christian Church locations in Louisville.
“There will probably be around 5,000 people who will build those 27 homes, and they’ll do it in four hours,” Minton said.
The volunteers will be divided into teams of about six to eight people apiece. Each team will be tasked to build a wall of a home. Once the build is complete, the team will add a personal touch of fellowship—whether that be writing words of encouragement or inspiration on the wood, penning a letter to the family that will be living in the home, or simply praying over the wall. The walls are then loaded onto trucks and transported to people in need in Kentucky, Indiana, and Tennessee through our partnerships with Habitat for Humanity and the Fuller Center for Housing.
“We provide a semi-complete lumber package,” Minton explained. “Along with the walls they get a check for $1,500 to help with trusses and decking and things like that.”
Minton remembers being part of the first multi-home build of this type—which took place in Knoxville, at the Tennessee Christian Teen Convention, for families in Mexico. At that event, the wood structure was built for five homes. This year, the same project will complete its 950th home.
“What 950 homes means to me is just the tens of thousands, if not well over a hundred thousand, people that have been engaged in active meaningful service to their communities,” Minton said. “Their history is forever changed … because they now have a home.”
What Minton likes most about these projects is that they become a way to mobilize entire church communities to help in the service of others.
“We don’t care if you’re 5 years old or 95,” Minton said. “If you show up, you can help.”
Four teams with Help Build Hope constantly are traveling across the nation overseeing and organizing these builds. If you want to organize a one-house build for your church or organization, contact Help Build Hope Director Brian Snivley at brian@crossroadsmissions.com.
The work does not stop here. In June, Louisville will host a “ServeLouisville blitz build” where three houses will be constructed in full from the foundation up in a span of just three days. Skilled laborers such as plumbers, electricians, and carpenters are needed in great supply to help accomplish this goal. If you would like to contribute your time and skill to help these families in Louisville attain home ownership, send an email to rick@crossroadsmissions.com.
This is just one way that CrossRoads Missions makes a difference in local communities. To find out more about what we do, or gather information on one of our upcoming build trips, visit our website, www.crossroadsmissions.com.
