Ever since Millard and Linda Fuller founded Habitat for Humanity in 1976, the groundbreaking organization’s Michigan Affiliates have built over 1,500 homes. In Macomb County–home of the Big Nail–Macomb County Habitat for Humanity is drawing attention by using a new construction technique that calls for Styrofoam blocks to be used in the walls for added stability, insulation, and soundproofing.

From Charles E. Ramirez at The Detroit News:

The new ranch style house being built for Michael Alford and his family will look like a lot of other Habitat for Humanity houses in Macomb County, but it’s the first of its kind. That’s because Macomb County Habitat for Humanity is using a new technique to build it by putting Styrofoam blocks in the walls for added insulation.

“We originally planned a conventional construction of the (Alford) house,” said Daniel Wiiki, the nonprofit’s executive director. “But this opportunity came up, and we said, ‘Let’s see how it works.’”

The method makes houses more energy-efficient.

“The families we partner with for our houses are low-income,” said Wiiki. “They don’t have a lot of resources to work with, so we want to make sure our houses are affordable in the first place and they continue to be affordable.”

Michael Alford thinks the new technology should be a big benefit for his family. “Not only is it supposed to make the house 40 to 70 percent more energy efficient, it’s supposed to also soundproof it,” he said.

Click here for the rest of article, and here for more information about Macomb County Habitat for Humanity.

The Big Nail doesn’t watch a lot of television, but if it did, one show it’d certainly make sure not to miss is ABC’s ‘Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.’ Much to many people’s surprise, the show is now filming right in the Big Nail’s backyard. Earlier this week, ABC, with assistance from our local Habitat for Humanity volunteers, surprised a local family by providing them with an extreme home makeover of their own.

From Christy Arboscello at The Detroit Free Press:

In the first months after David Gilliam and his family moved into an 1886-era farmhouse in Armada Township, he ripped out some cabinets, installed a new well and began other improvements.
But he never finished the work. He died suddenly on Christmas Eve 2005, just 41.

“He started to renovate it. That was his dream,” said Armada Township Fire Chief Steve Jerzewski, who has fond memories of Gilliam and his work as a firefighter and paramedic in the community.

On Monday, ABC-TV’s “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” surprised his widow, Maryann Gilliam, 32, and her six children with a promise to fulfill David Gilliam’s dream and tear down and rebuild the home over the next week.

The show’s producers whisked away Maryann Gilliam and the children — whose ages range from 8 months to 12 years — from her sister’s home in Mt. Clemens to an undisclosed vacation spot. On Monday, they are expected to return to a newly built home on their 1-acre lot. The show’s air date has yet to be determined, but it will appear in the upcoming season.

Click here for the rest of the article.

The Big Nail will have more on the Gilliam’s much deserved gift in the days and weeks to come. In the meantime, we salute ABC, the producers of ‘Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,’ and the hundreds of local Habitat for Humanity volunteers for their hard work and dedication. In reality, this family–like all of the others the show serves–really needed your help!

Meet Sam Ansah, his wife, Esther, and their four babies, Sam Jr., Nora, Simon, and Naomi. Living in a small one-bedroom apartment in the Bronx, the Ansah family was not expecting to exponentially expand their family so soon, but before they knew what happened, this family of two quickly became a family of six!

Sam knew his one-bedroom would not be a healthy environment for his new family. After researching his options, Sam came across Habitat for Humanity NYC. After being told he was selected to become a Family Partner with Habitat NYC, Sam and his wife–natives of Ghana, West Africa–are finally living out their dream…The American Dream of Homeownership.

Here’s another picture… this one of the Big Nail’s owner, Ralph R. Roberts, who was in New York City for a real estate industry conference where attendees donated nearly $130,000 towards the construction of the Ansah’s new home.

Two weeks ago, Habitat for Humanity affiliates all across the United States–along with thousands of professional homebuilders–joined forces to construct more than 400 houses in 130 communities in just five days. Here in the metro-Warren/Detroit area (where I serve on the Board of Directors of Macomb County Habitat for Humanity), volunteers and professional builders with ties to the Building Industry Association of Southeastern Michigan, partnered to construct eight new homes, all of which benefited deserving families and neighborhoods in need.

The idea of a nationwide build that partnered Habitat for Humanity volunteers with professional homebuilders began in Raleigh, North Carolina, in 2002, when 12 homes were constructed in less than one week. Then, in 2003, 24 homes were built in a week, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Here are some little-known facts: Habitat for Humanity is currently ranked overall as the 18th largest home builder in the United States, and the third largest private home builder. The organization works in more than 1,700 locations across the country, completing on average more than 5,000 homes per year and nearly 20,000 homes per year outside the United States.

Why I’m blogging about all of this is because The Big Nail is proud to support the work of Habitat for Humanity. The Big Nail encourages everyone out there check out Macomb County Habitat for Humanity for themselves. If you do not live in the local area, visit the national Habitat for Humanity web site and search for an affiliate in your area. And if you’re a college student, don’t let that fact stop you from volunteering. As my daughter Kolleen found out when she enrolled at Albion, many colleges and universities have Habitat for Humanity chapters of their own.