As the fiscal sponsor for Homes for White Sulphur Springs, the Greenbrier Valley Community Foundation (
) will provide the public with periodic financial reports that include the contributions and expenditures made on behalf of the project as well as the procedures followed for selecting vendors and awarding homes in Hope Village. This information will be available on the “Hope Village” page of the foundation’s website: www.gvfoundation.org. It can also be obtained by contacting the GVCF office. Additionally, the website has been providing important information about the Hope Village project. A copy of the application for residency may be downloaded from the site.
To date, GVCF has received $1,049,353.48 in contributions to Homes for White Sulphur Springs from the following donors: Mylan Charitable Foundation, K.W. Cares, a public charity created by Keller Williams Realty to support families with hardship as a result of a sudden emergency, St. Charles Boromeo Church, Brenda and Robert Maust, Harry Ballard, Black Dog Salvage of Roanoke, VA, Todd W. Jared as well as Judith and Jerry Jared. All contributions will be spent toward the rebuilding efforts in Greenbrier County, and GVCF is not charging any administrative fees for the work that it is performing.
The building and rebuilding work is being administered and executed on a volunteer basis by Mennonite Disaster Services (MDS) of Lititz, PA. For generations, Mennonites and other Anabaptist groups have been providing disaster aid as an expression of their faith.
Founded in 1950, MDS relies on some 4,000 volunteers from Mennonite, Amish, and Brethren in Christ churches to annually carry out its ministry to respond, rebuild and restore communities and families hit by disasters in the U.S. and Canada.
Under the direction of Manny Flaud and Jerry Grosh, representatives from MDS are currently working with all local building materials suppliers to obtain bids on the costs of materials. Once the lowest price has been established, MDS will offer all of the suppliers the opportunity to match that price. In addition, donated materials will be used. New homes will be conventional construction and will range in size from 900 to 1200 square feet. They will offer two or three bedrooms with either one or two full baths.
As a result of reduced prices, combined with donated labor and materials, the estimated cost for building a house in Hope Village is approximately $45-$50,000. Residents will be asked to contribute an amount commensurate with their financial circumstances toward the purchase of their new home.
The Application Committee for Homes for White Sulphur Springs held its first meeting on Aug. 31 to consider the submissions it had received to date. Serving on this committee are Tom Crabtree, architect and co-founder of Homes for White Sulphur Springs, Mr. Flaud and Mr. Grosh of MDS, Maggie Hutchinson, a member of the advisory board and primary caseworker for Homes for White Sulphur Springs, Cli Roberts, an Americorps representative from the St. Bernard Project, Pastor Robert McClintic, and GVCF Executive Director Courtney Smith.
The Greenbrier Valley Community Foundation is a collection of funds that make distributions to support the charitable needs of our community. It has distributed over $3.5 million since it was established in 1999. For more information about GVCF and its grants, visit www.gvfoundation.org or contact Courtney Smith, executive director, at 304-645-5620, info@gvfoundation.org.
