Habitat for Humanity celebrates 200 home projects and seeks help for more

SANTA BARBARA, Calif.- In an emotional ceremony, Habitat for Humanity of Southern Santa Barbara County celebrated its 200th project.

It was a Santa Barbara mobile home with a dire need for a new roof and other improvements. These mobile (or manufactured) homes are showing their wear in many locations and the need is great for repairs.

The owner's mother lived on the site for more than 30 years until she passed recently. They qualified for help from Habitat and when all the pieces came together, the work began.

Volunteers are essential to the work, that includes donated materials and funds from donations.

The owner often times takes part in the project whether it is a complete construction or a repair job. This owner, Teresa Cardenas said she would be helping with whatever she could either on her site or in the area when other projects come up. She will also help Habitat with translations for the non-English speaking clients.

With rain coming and the aging roof failing, Cardenas was worried.
"I was very scared that the rain was going to start again and it was  really bad conditions. Now things are working out and everything thanks to Habitat, " she said.

These projects are showing up often on the work list.

"The need is profound. A lot of the (mobile) homes  that were built over 50 years ago were built just for ten years, temporary housing.  We need to make that home safer," said Habitat CEO Jessica Wisham de L'Arbre.

It's often a last chance project and a life saver.

The volunteers also did painting, general cleanup and gardening around the home.

The project site off of upper State St. is a mobile home park that has had other qualified residents who have a safer home because of this work.

Habitat serves an area from Gaviota to Carpinteria. They are getting calls from the north county but are not set up to respond there at this time. The volunteers were very helpful during the repair jobs in a Carpinteria mobile home park last year after a mini-tornado went through.

Habitat is actively looking for more volunteers in several areas of construction.

Financial donations can be leveraged for supplies along with the surplus donated materials that come in.

Habitat is also looking for a new storefront location where materials can be dropped off and some can be sold to raise new funds.