Habitat for Humanity House, built and decorated by over 200 volunteers today in Bay Shore
November 4, 2009
(Bay Shore,N.Y.)-Every time Georgia Barnes walks through the front door of her new home she will never forget the hundreds of volunteers who helped her make it a home. Today between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. the doors will be open to the media and volunteers to see the hard work and beautiful result of the Barnes home at 19 Harrison Avenue, Bay Shore.
Construction began in April with more than 30 volunteers raising the walls of the modest three bedroom home. Georgia Barnes, who had put many hours of sweat equity into other Habitat homes, soon learned that most Long Islanders would rather give than receive. Community volunteers from Long Island area Lutheran Churches built the house. This is the eleventh Habitat Suffolk project that LI Lutherans have supported through the financial support of AAL and Thrivent Builds. Additional volunteers and sponsors came from Travelers Insurance and LIBOR (Long Island Board of Realtors). If that were not enough, Val Alloco of ASHSR. the American Society of Home Stagers and Redesigners, Central Long Island Chapter, stepped in to decorate and complete the house.
Barnes was stunned to feel the love and devotion of so many volunteers. Once the decorating began another gift was bestowed on the Barnes family, as dozens of donations from friends and clients of the stagers began to arrive. Even Wal-Mart and Lowe’s got into the act by donating more than $1,000 in goods. “Carmela Abella and I knew furniture was going to be difficult to get, but we set out in search and while many stores turned us down, Cort Furniture Rental in Farmingdale gave us all the furniture for the house,” Alloco said. The decorating continued but with some hitches. “At one point Carmella’s dad took gravely ill, but she has continued to work on the house every day,” added Alloca. Another stager, Pam Holland, went so far as to carry manure in the back of her car for three days. “It was too heavy for her to lift out of the car, quipped Abella, adding, “Georgia’s house is going to have beautiful curb appeal long after Pam’s car smells nice again.” Georgia Barnes is a hardworking, single mother of three children. Her two oldest children are in their twenties and support themselves on Long Island. Georgia has been employed as a dietary aide in a Nassau County nursing home for the past nine years. She currently lives in Huntington Station with her thirteen-year-old son, Barachel. “They are living in a cramped, substandard basement,” said Les Scheinfeld, Associate Director of Habitat for Humanity of Suffolk. “We are truly overwhelmed by the kindness and support that the community has given to this family. This is truly a holiday house with all the love and … did we mention the Long Island Girl Scouts,” said Scheinfeld. Once the Girl Scouts got a call from Carmela they mustered up all the troops and packed the house with groceries, and other household accessories. The Girl Scouts of Suffolk County are also providing the food for the formal dedication which will be held on Saturday, November 7th at 11:30 a.m.
Habitat for Humanity of Suffolk is a nonprofit Christian housing ministry dedicated to building decent, affordable housing in partnership with low-income working families in Suffolk County. Since 1987, Habitat for Humanity of Suffolk has helped to house 135 families. For more information, visit www.habitatsuffolk.org
Posted by News LI Editor · Filed Under Society
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5 Responses to “Habitat for Humanity House, built and decorated by over 200 volunteers today in Bay Shore”
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Thank you for posting this story about our newest Habitat Suffolk family and the amazing community volunteers and partners who have contributed to the project. The “Open House” mentioned in the release refers to the media and is scheduled for this Friday, November 6 from 10 - 2. The general public is invited to attend the formal dedication ceremony for Ms. Barnes and her family on Saturday, November 7 at 11:30 am.
Habitat Suffolk is so thankful to our friends, volunteers, donors who help us create affordable home-ownership opportunities for low-income working families on Long Island. “Help build it!”
- Posted by: Les Scheinfeld, Associate Director
I am so proud of the Central Long Island Chapter of the American Society of Home Stagers and Redesigners who put in a ton of work on this project! Please come by the open house on Friday, November 6 from 10 - 2 to see the amazing job everyone did, as well as meet the designers. Thank you Habitat for Humanity in Suffolk for the opportunity!
- Posted by: Audra Slinkey, President of ASHSR
This has been one of the most rewarding projects I have ever worked on. The generosity and compassion that I have encountered reinforces my belief that there is goodness in this world. And even though this project was intended to bring awareness to Home Staging, I have learned a valuable lesson. Never underestimate what we, as decent human beings, can do we put our hearts and mind into it. I will never forget the friendship that were forged on this project. Thank you Les for giving us “stagers” an opportunity to give this gift to Georgia Barnes and her son.
- Posted by: Carmela Abella
I very much appreciate the Central Long Island chapter of the American Society of Home Stagers and Re-designers (ASHR) for their thoughtfulness and generosity to this wonderful project. I am grateful to have been able to participate as the Feng Shui consultant for this lovely Bay Shore Habitat for Humanity home.
I have been fortune enough to have worked with some of the best people and see this project being pulled together through the generosity of so many.
It was a delight to incorporate Feng Shui Principles into this space.
- Posted by: Laura Cerrano, Feng Shui Consultant
Words cannot express how thankful I am to the Home Stager members of ASHSR Metro NY and Central LI Chapters for their help in turning a vacant ‘new house’ into a wonderful ‘new home’ for the Barnes family! Carmella Abella (Abella Home Staging) and Moe Scarcello (Moe Scarcello Home Staging & Design Solutions) were my fellow project managers and I thank them for their tireless work AND unending support!
Landscaper and Curb Appeal Specialist, Pam Holland of Holland Environmental Design, used all of her resources to provide a beautiful landscape for the house. This house now has ‘top-notch’ “curb appeal” (not to mention a beautiful sod lawn!)!
Thank you to Feng Shui Consultants Laura Cerrano of Feng Shui Manhattan and Carole Provenzale of Feng Shui LI for their efforts in obtaining donations and making certain that the house was properly feng shuied. We stagers learned a lot about Feng Shui practices thanks to your patient explanations!
It has been a pleasure getting to know Les Scheinfeld and Pam Cordes of Habitat For Humanity Suffolk County. It was amazing how this project came about and even more amazing that we were able to pull it off! With the exception of the furniture, most donations for household ‘necessities and accessories’ came at the 11th hour! For a while there, we didn’t think that we were going to have anything to go WITH the furniture!
Cort Furniture Rental of Farmingdale donated all of the furniture for the family to keep with the exception of the kitchen set which was provided by Tiffany Furniture in Farmingdale. We thank them for their generosity and compassion. Special thanks go to Maria Boscarino of Cort Furniture for helping to choose the furniture AND convincing her company to be part of this very special project!
Walmart, Lowes and Home Depot all made sizable contributions in merchandise. Home Stager Robin Rosen (Stageffect Inc) donated, from her personal collection, the fabulous artwork that hangs in every room. This house is now, most definitely, ‘turn key’; everything is in place for the family to move in and start their new life!
We wish Georgia and her son, Barachel, much love, laughter and happiness in their new home!
- Posted by: Val Allocco, Chapter President Metro NY & Central LI Chapters of ASHSR