HENRYVILLE, IND. (WDRB) -- Eleven volunteers from Americorps are digging in to help storm victims in southern Indiana.
As Americorps volunteer Jimmy Cartagena explains, "We've been leveling the garages, porches, and the regular foundation itself, so we can get a slab of concrete laid out to start construction." It's part of Habitat for Humanity's effort to build ten new homes in Henryville's Twin Oaks subdivision.
Bill Moriarty of Habitat for Humanity says, "They'll be high energy efficient homes and able to withstand winds of 140 miles an hour."
That's important to Emily Hall. She's not a volunteer, she's working on what will be her new home. The old one was beat up by hail during the EF-4 tornado on March 2nd.
While construction supplies and mounds of rock and dirt are encouraging, rebuilding in that community is proving harder than anyone thought. Plans were for Habitat to have 250 volunteers as part of a homebuilding blitz building 20 homes in a week.
That was pushed to October after a mistake on a grant application and half the homes are no longer being built. Moriarty says, "We just could not find any homeowners that wanted to apply to live in Madison that lived in the affected Chelsea, Nab area or out in the rural area or Marysville or anywhere."
Habitat's not alone. On Thursday, Hollis Lanham watched volunteers work at his house -- one of the 100 a local church pledged to build over two years. He was told it would be done in June.
The non-profits know the delays hurt. Moriarty says, "It's disappointing but when you're working hand-in-hand with the ten families, it's a blessing."
That's a blessing Hall really needs. The storm tore apart her house. She lost her daughter two months later. It's not just a new place to live, it's a new beginning.
As she explains, "Me and my husband are so grateful that this happened to us, that this is a starting point for our life now on."
Habitat hopes to complete the ten homes and have families moving in just before Christmas. The construction is funding by grants and private donations to meet families' income levels.
We're told Hall's mortgage will be no more than $500 a month.
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