The Faith Relations Committee of Habitat for Humanity Choptank recently hosted its annual prayer breakfast. The event included representatives from Dorchester and Talbot County churches, elected officials, and Habitat Choptank Board members, volunteers, and staff. The prayer breakfast is a celebration of the partnerships between people of faith and Habitat Choptank, and an update on ongoing opportunities for the faith community and Habitat to join together in serving the community through the elimination of substandard housing in the two-county region. Union Baptist Church in Easton generously provided use of their church hall for the gathering.
The theme of the morning’s program was “Seeing the Need; Building a Solution.” Habitat Choptank staff members offered brief presentations about the need for affordable housing in the Dorchester and Talbot Counties, and about Habitat Choptank’s success to date and future plans for further addressing this need. Kim Cassady, chairman of the Faith Relations Committee, thanked the churches for their past support through financial contributions and volunteer time. He also made a special request, asking each church to continue or further its support by praying for Habitat and the elimination of substandard housing, joining the Faith Relations Committee, and hosting an information session at their place of worship so that Habitat Choptank could speak with interested congregation members about home ownership and volunteer opportunities.
Habitat home owner Ashlie Elliott was also part of the program. Elliott spoke at Habitat Choptank’s 2009 prayer breakfast in Dorchester County while her home was under construction and she was completing Habitat’s multi-step home owner education program. Last fall, Elliott purchased her home from Habitat Choptank with an interest-free mortgage, and she thanked those in attendance for their help and support. “My son is 12 years old and in his lifetime, we’ve had to move nine times,” explained Elliott. “The night we moved into our house he came downstairs from his bedroom and said, ‘Mom, I’m glad we won’t have to move again.’ Now, I hope we can help more families become home owners.”
Habitat for Humanity Choptank is an independent non-profit organization which operates according to the Affiliate Covenant set forth by Habitat for Humanity International. Habitat International is an inter-faith housing ministry that positively impacts the lives of God’s people in need here in the United States as well as in over 30 countries on 6 continents and has overseen construction or renovation of over 200,000 homes since its founding in 1976.
Habitat Choptank’s mission is to eliminate substandard housing in Dorchester and Talbot counties. Since its founding in 1992, the organization has worked in partnership with volunteers, churches, community organizations, businesses, and its future homeowners to help 48 local working families achieve homeownership. To learn more about Habitat, to volunteer or to make a donation, visit www.habitatchoptank.org or call 410-820-6186.