As 2015 comes to a close, Lowcountry Habitat for Humanity turning toward 2016
This story was updated with corrected information for a planned health fair and 5k run.
With one house left to dedicate before the end of the year, Lowcountry Habitat for Humanity hasn't yet flipped their calendar to 2016.
But that doesn't mean they aren't thinking about it.
Next month, the nonprofit organization will kick off 2016 by starting its application process for prospective families like the one that will receive a new home Dec. 19 and hosting a health fair and 5K run in northern Beaufort County, marketing and resource development director Janie Lackman said.
The family of four will receive a newly-built home in Mint Farm Dec. 19, the organization's third and final home built in 2015 and its 44th total in 25 years of serving the Beaufort area, Lackman said.
The house took nearly six months to complete. Construction and inspections were recently finished. It is nicknamed the "Tribute House," built in honor of Habitat for Humanity's volunteers, she said.
After the new home dedication, Lowcountry Habitat for Humanity will begin looking forward to the new year, with a slate of early events planned in January. On Jan. 16, the organization will host a health fair from 9 a.m. to noon Jan. 15 and a 5K run at Dataw Island at 10 a.m. Jan. 16, part of their "New Year, New You" campaign, Lackman said.
Habitat for Humanity will also hold its three orientation meetings for prospective local families in January. The meetings are spread out around northern Beaufort County, with one on St. Helena Island, in Grays Hill, and in Beaufort, Lackman said.
The meeting times are expected to be finalized and released later this week, she said.
From those early meetings, the families have about a month to turn in applications; the organization looks through them and picks out top applicants for in-home visits.
Families are considered and selected based on a number of factors, from the state of their current living situation to their ability to repay the no-interest mortgage to the organization.
Three or four families are selected to receive homes from Habitat for Humanity later in the year, Lackman said. Once the families are selected, they have to pay "Sweat Equity Hours," volunteering for Habitat for Humanity in a number of ways such as working in the organization's store, working on home construction, or just helping around the organization's office in Beaufort, she said.
Their willingness to get involved with the organization is crucial to its success, Lackman said.
"We're very proud to be a hand-up program, not a handout program," Lackman said. "We're super excited to get this family in before the holidays."
Follow reporter Matt McNab at twitter.com/IPBG_Matt.
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This story was originally published December 7, 2015 at 3:12 PM with the headline "As 2015 comes to a close, Lowcountry Habitat for Humanity turning toward 2016."