A true picture of community was evident during our ‘Bless This House’ event on March 5th., 2023 when different faiths, ages, ethnicities, and socioeconomic statuses all came together to support two deserving families of our local community at our building on Virginia Ave. Our duplex on Virginia Avenue is unique in that it is a Faith Build. At Central Valley Habitat for Humanity, we invite different faith groups to put their faith into action by sponsoring our builds. These sponsorships can take many forms. Churches, mosques, synagogues or temples can donate monetarily through the cost of materials or they can volunteer to help swing hammers or put up walls.

This specific home was sponsored by multiple different churches or faith groups in our area: Harrisonburg Baptist Church, Massanutten Presbyterian Church, Church of the Lamb, and Church of the Nazarene. This partnership allowed us to help two local families make their dreams of homeownership a reality. One is a refugee family of six from Eritrea and the other is a single mom local to Rockingham County. Both families have worked hard to make their dreams a reality by working alongside volunteers through sweat equity while paying an affordable mortgage.

The ‘Bless This House’ event was an opportunity for these churches to come together in fellowship to encourage the families by writing blessings and scriptures on the framing boards of the home. “A lot of time you know you’re donating to something but you don’t ever touch it or see it,” said Scott Kleist, the Board Chair of CVHFH. These events allow the families and congregations to come together and celebrate the meaningful impact they are making. We are looking forward to doing more of these faith based builds and to hosting more of these house blessing events in the future.

Bringing people together to put God’s love into action is an integral part of our mission, so it is important to us to give our local faith community an opportunity to walk alongside us and our families. If you are interested in sponsoring a build with us, please contact us!