The International Day of Prayer and Action brought the Habitat for Humanity community together in prayer for those in need of shelter. Congregations of all faiths joined together last Sunday, September 21st at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church for an interfaith prayer service with music, prayer, scriptures and thoughts by Pastor Bill Davis of the Provo Seventh-day Adventist Church.
Habitat’s International Day of Prayer began in 1983 to make housing a matter of conscience with the goal to place in the hearts, minds, and souls of people everywhere the idea that poverty housing is unacceptable. Prayer provides an opportunity to keep faith at the center of a call to service and justice. For more than three decades, Habitat for Humanity has made a dramatic difference in the lives of people around the world.
Habitat for Humanity Board Chairperson, Brad Simons welcomed those in attendance and thanked all volunteers and sponsors past and present for their continued support of Habitat’s mission to provide affordable housing for those in need.
“We help people and they help themselves,” Simons said. “All of our families earn their homes through their own hard work and with the help of the community members and generous sponsors.”
Mary Kae Blair, a mother of 5 and a future Habitat for Humanity homeowners spoke to the congregation and expressed her sincerest thanks for the community’s support of her and her family.
“The home that we are building means a lot to us,” Blair said. “It’s a huge weight being lifted from us.”
Blair and her family see their future home as an answer to prayers. Mary Kae and her husband Alex have been living with their 5 children in an 800 square foot duplex.
As part of Habitat for Humanity homeownership program prospective Habitat homeowner families generally make a $500 down payment. Additionally, the Blair’s must contribute 500 hours of "sweat equity" on the construction of their home or someone else's home. Because Habitat houses are built using donations of land, materials and labor, mortgage payments are kept affordable. Habitat homeowners pay the mortgage on the home once they move in with their payments going to help other families in need in the community.
The International Day of Prayer and Action is a time when the entire Habitat for Humanity community is urged to come together in prayer for those in need of shelter. Through prayer, Habitat for Humanity continues to make a dramatic difference in the lives of people around the world.
To volunteer, donate, or for more information, look online at www.habitatuc.org.
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