GENESEE COUNTY HABITAT FOR HUMANITY
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Building Stronger Communities, One Project at a Time.

7/7/2017

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Thanks to one of Genesee County Habitat's newest programs, FlintBRAND, resident leaders and community groups across the City of Flint are taking the lead in creating better communities for themselves, their children, and their neighbors. From growing gardens to serve as community food hubs to restoring neighborhood parks to provide safe opportunities for active recreation, 
and from floral gardens planted to honor the memory and legacy of the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to the demolition of blighted commercial structures within busy neighborhood corridors, Habitat is partnering with community members all over Flint to wrestle beauty from blight and build strong and stable communities by investing in catalytic, resident led neighborhood projects. ​

The program, which provides staff support for project planning and implementation, as well as funding to help get the project started, is funded thanks to generous support from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. As part of the program, groups commit 10% of their project's cost in sweat equity, and while working with Habitat groups receive access to training in action planning, impact evaluation, and best practices in community revitalization from certified Habitat staff. 

Visit our website here for more information about the FlintBRAND program.
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Together we're building strong communities!                            
                     What's your FlintBRAND?

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Building Homes, Communities, Hope, and ...Checkerboards?

3/28/2017

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PictureCheckerboard under construction in our basement.
​You can easily #DIY your own checkerboard table! To build the tabletop, we used UrbanWood (available at our ReStore). The surface should be no smaller than 2‘ x 2’. The checkerboard grid is formed by 2” squares burned into the wood, forming an 8x8 grid of alternating colors. This could easily be painted onto the tabletop, as well. For playing pieces, we used wood salvaged from the Flint River. During a neighborhood cleanup, look for a small branch about 1-1.5” in diameter. Make cuts through the wood about ¼” apart to form twenty-four discs to use for playing pieces. Store leftover wood in a dry place to easily replace any lost discs, as needed. We then dipped twelve of the playing pieces in dark walnut wood stain to create a darker color; the rest were left natural. You could also use paint of any color to distinguish between the two players. Once dried, the playing pieces were placed in a small burlap sack and attached to the table.
 
We hope that you, just like those living in the Foss Neighborhood, will be able to connect with neighbors of all ages and get to know one another over a friendly game of checkers!

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Checkerboards in action at the Foss Avenue Nature Area and Community Pavilion on Carpenter Rd.!
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Water Assurance - A Step in Safeguarding Against Lead

3/28/2017

3 Comments

 
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​Over the past few months, we’ve gotten our water assurance program up and running.  This program offers under the sink 3M filters, replacement faucets, and shower heads for Flint homeowners with positive lead tests.  We also provide shower filters to any Flint resident.  Since February, we’ve completed twenty-seven preliminary site visits for homeowners applying to the full program.  On these visits we’ve installed shower filters and distributed water test kits.  We have distributed a total of ninety shower filters, including those installed on site visits.  In addition to the filters, we’ve been able to provide four homeowners with new water heaters.  As homeowners complete the application process, we will soon begin full installations of under the sink filters and faucets.

Visit our Critical Home Repair Services page for more information. 

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Neighborhood Revitalization - A Homegrown Effort

12/19/2016

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How do you meaningfully engage community members as active participants in the work of neighborhood revitalization? It's a question that community development agencies have grappled with for decades. Here at Genesee County Habitat for Humanity, however, we think the answer is simple - give community members the tools needed to lead that work for themselves!

​Flint BRAND 

The first step to any successfull neighborhood revitalization effort is having the resources needed to make things happen, and Genesee County Habitat for Humanity is here to help! Thanks to support from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, Habitat has begun a new program called Flint BRAND (Building Resident Action by Neighborhood Design). Through Flint BRAND, resident groups throughout the City of Flint can apply to Habitat for support implementing projects up to $10,000. In addition to project support, Habitat staff works with all applicants to design high-impact projects that create a positive, lasting change in the physical landscape of neighborhoods and address pressing community concerns.
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Voice of Women
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Even more important than investing in places, is investing in the people that make those places home. Building off of the tremendous response to our Grassroots Rising: Resident Leadership Summit this past summer, Habitat is offering a free six-week training series titled Voice of Women. This six-week series provides participants with information and resources to help them take ownership of neighborhood projects and work effetively with residents and community leaders. Topics include:
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  • Gaining Confidence by Strengthening Core Competencies
  • Leader Presentation Skills
  • Effective Meetings with Neighbors, Community Leaders, and Law Enforcement
  • Collaborating for Neighborhood Improvement Results
  • Facilitation Skills for Effective Neighborhood Meetings
  • Project Management for Successful Neighborhood Transformation ​
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Click on the links below for more information about Voice of Women, Flint BRAND, or Habitat's work in Neighborhood Revitalization, or contact us at (810)766-9089 ext. 208.
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Resident Leadership in Action

9/30/2016

5 Comments

 
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Throughout June and July, Habitat partnered with NeighborWorks America to organize the Grassroots Rising: Resident Leadership Summit, connecting with more than 60 resident leaders throughout Flint!

As a continuation of this tremendous work, Habitat is excited to announce a new round of supports for resident leaders across Flint and Genesee County. On October 10th, in partnership with the Center for Community Progress and GTECH Strategies, Genesee County Habitat for Humanity is hosting a community training Blight Elimination and Vacant Lot Reuse: Strategies for Flint Neighborhood Leaders. The training will provide participants with a deeper understanding of the basic property law principles and legal history that should inform community-oriented efforts to remediate vacancy and abandonment and strengthen communities, as well as an overview of GTECH’s work on the ground in Allegheny County, PA including the Lots to Love web-based toolkit for resident-driven change.

Following this training, Genesee County will be rolling out the newly developed Voice of Women: Creating a Framework for Women to Change Their Neighborhoods and Communities curriculum. Developed by Habitat for Humanity International, Voice of Women is designed to provide women with leadership skills and structure to affect positive change in their neighborhoods and communities. This six-part training series provides women with a framework to exercise an active voice in civic, political, educational, and social workings within their community.

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101 Burton Street, Flint, MI 48503
  • Home
  • About Us
    • Mission, Vision, and History
    • Board & Staff >
      • Board Resources
    • Habitat for Humanity International
    • Habitat Michigan
    • Local Habitat News & Updates
    • Employment
    • Invitation to Bid
  • Programs
    • Home Ownership
    • Home Repair
    • Housing and Financial Counseling
    • Neighborhood Revitalization
    • Flint BRAND
    • Homebuyer Education
    • Online Homebuyer Education
  • ReStore
    • About the ReStore
    • Volunteer at the ReStore
    • Urbanwood at the ReStore
    • SCHEDULE A ReStore DONATION PICK-UP
  • Get Involved
    • Volunteer
    • Campus Chapter
    • Sign Up for Our Newsletter
    • Events >
      • Golf Scramble
      • Bastille
  • Support
    • Donate
    • Car Donations
    • Shop with Purpose
    • Thrivent Choice
    • Corporate Opportunities