Celebration of 387 Lenox Street, New Haven: May 22 at 3:30 p.m.

Habitat for Humanity of Greater New Haven invites the community to celebrate the completion of the recently restored house at 387 Lenox Street in New Haven, the home of the Sanchez family. The event will take place at the home in Fair Haven Heights on Wednesday, May 22 at 3:30 p.m.

The Greek Revival-style house, constructed in 1833, was carefully restored by Habitat’s staff, the Sanchez family, and hundreds of volunteers from the community. The restoration includes a high masonry basement, popular in nineteenth-century homes for use as oyster cellars, and a front entry way that fits the character of the home and surrounding neighborhood. Situated on the corner of Lenox and Clifton Streets, the house beautifully illustrates that the creation of affordable housing and the preservation on a historically significant building can go hand-in-hand.

Speakers at the dedications will include representatives from Habitat for Humanity of Greater New Haven, the City of New Haven, our community revitalization partner the Avangrid Foundation, and the New Haven Preservation Trust, which provided technical assistance and partial funding for the project. The Avangrid Foundation, the City of New Haven’s Community Development Block Grants, Eversource, and Habitat for Humanity community build Raise the Roof, were all instrumental in providing funding for this project.

Parking will be available on Clifton Street and the surrounding area, including at Dom Aitro Field in Fairmont Park (81 Clifton Street). Light refreshments will be served after the ceremony.

RSVPs to Allison Mangles (amangles@habitatgnh.org) are preferred.

The Great Give: May 1-2

Join us for 36 hours of giving to support Habitat for Humanity of Greater New Haven! This is the tenth year we will be participating in the event along with other non-profit organizations that serve the New Haven community. Gifts made between 8:00 a.m. on May 1 and 8:00 p.m. on May 2 will help us to earn monetary prizes and increase funds raised to support our home-building program. There is a special opportunity for housing organizations to earn an additional $2,000 between 9:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. on May 2. The housing organization with the most unique donors during this time period will be named the winner. No gift is too small! Set your alarm and make sure to make your gift during the Great Give.

“Building Your Voice” Event to Benefit Habitat for Humanity: May 5

Spoken word comes to the Kate – come see and hear the inaugural presentation of acclaimed authors reading their own words in “Building Your Voice” to benefit one of our community builds, Raise The Roof. The event is sponsored by RJ Julia Booksellers of Madison, CT and will take place on Sunday, May 5 at 4:00 p.m.

This performance is hosted by WNPR Radio personality Chion Wolf and allows three diverse and powerful voices to express their art. Randi Minetor will read from her thriller Death in Glacier National Park. Padma Venkatraman reads from her story of courage The Bridge Home. Rebecca Coffey reads from her fascinating book Hysterical, Anna Freud’s Story.

There will be a chance to meet the authors and talk to them about lifetimes in writing, all for a great cause! Join us in the world of spoken word performances at the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center. Click here to purchase tickets for this great event!

2018 Annual Appeal

Our Annual Appeal is going on now! Please consider making a gift this year to support our home building projects in New Haven. Through your generosity, we can partner with more families next year and continue building affordable housing in New Haven. You can see your gift in action in 2019 with our first project of the year on Peck Street in New Haven. Volunteering on the work site and attending the dedication at the completion of the project are great ways to see the benefit of your of your donation. To learn about one family’s journey to home ownership with Habitat please read our annual appeal letter. Thank you in advance for your support.

The Rivera Family in front of their new home.

Volunteers Needed on October 6: Head of the Housatonic Regatta

We will once again be managing the parking at the Head of the Housatonic Regatta and collecting donations from all attendees to support our home building projects! The event takes place on Saturday, October 6 and there are three, 3-hour volunteer shifts beginning at 6:00 a.m. and ending at 3:00 p.m. Volunteers are needed to direct traffic, collect donations, and offer information to attendees. The parking takes place at 2 Corporate Drive in Shelton and the regatta takes place at Indian Well State Park, both in Shelton. Following their shift all volunteers are invited to take the shuttle bus to the regatta to see what all the excitement is about! This volunteer opportunity is appropriate for individuals and groups. All volunteers must be at least 16 years of age. To sign up now please log into VolunteerUp. For more information please contact Allison Mangles, Volunteer Coordinator, at amangles@habitatgnh.org or (203) 785-0794 ext. 110. We hope to see you at the regatta!

Volunteers collecting parking donations at the 2017 Head of the Housatonic Regatta.

Dedication of 45 and 47 Vernon Street: July 5 at 4:30 p.m.

Join us as we celebrate on Vernon Street with the Rivera and Bracero-Vazquez families! Their new homes will be dedicated at a ceremony on July 5 at 4:30 p.m. Special thanks to Yale New Haven Hospital for sponsoring both of these homes and the all of the volunteers and supporters who made this build possible. In a week filled with festivities we hope to see you on Vernon Street!

Students from Guilford High School helped out at 47 Vernon Street in June. 45 Vernon Street will also be dedicated on July 5!

Volunteer Blog Link

For daily updates on weather cancellations, worksite location, etc., please visit our blog at http://www.habitatgnhvols.blogspot.com/.

Please note: the blog is not a scheduling tool. Do not report to the site if you have not been scheduled.

To schedule a date, contact Ellen McNally, Volunteer Coordinator, at (203) 785-0794, x.10.