Habitat for Humanity: The House is Done!

Last Friday, I tried to wet my feet in the world of work again...by attending the dedication ceremony for the Habitat for Humanity House the station helped to build! I'd worked on site a couple of times. The first time, I helped wrap it with Tyvek, which proved to be NOT my main gift in life. The second time I went, the weather was too bad to work on the house we were raising money to build, so I helped with other houses in the same community.

But the WBCL House is finally done, and we participated in the ceremony to dedicate the house and celebrate the new homeowners! The day was gorgeous - and FREEZING. I had a few layers on, but none were quite enough, I'm afraid.

The house is beautiful, and I failed to get a good picture of it! I borrowed this one from the station Facebook page, which gives you a general idea of what it looks like. I love the yellow siding. So inviting.

There was a welcome banner that the staff and guests to the dedication all signed:

It was such fun to see all my co-workers again after two weeks away. Only a couple of them knew I planned to come, so most were surprised to see me.

Dana answers our phones during Mid-Morning, and she came back to work after her maternity leave right when I left for my gallternity leave. So we were happy to be reunited!

And some of my best work buds: Cindy, Amy, and Lynne!

We got to tour through the house, which is just beautiful. I especially loved the kitchen! So pretty. When it was time for the dedication ceremony, we went outside, and I tried in vain to hide from the wind. Even so, it was really a beautiful time.

The gentleman with the microphone is Justin, who heads up the Habitat for Humanity chapter in Fort Wayne. He and Ross {our station director, in the red coat} headed up the ceremony. In the middle is our Habitat family! That's Lisa and her two sons, and this is their first home!

Several people made presentations throughout the event, and partway through, they surprised Lisa and her sons by opening the garage door to show her some gifts different listeners had donated. That was fun!

Jeri presented a gift all the WBCL ladies went together to purchase for Lisa. I loved it so much. It's  wall art that said "The Day Had Come to Open the Door to Her Dreams." It was so perfect to represent the day {And I'm just a huge fan of Red Letter Words art!}

Lynne presented the family with a new Bible for their new journey...and then Lisa prayed a blessing over her own home. It was a really lovely moment...I think I'll remember that one for a long time!

My friend Elisa works with Habitat and it was a joy for me to get to watch her shine in her work; it's obvious she is well loved in that organization. Elisa - so proud of you for all you do for these families!! :)

And then...it was time to hand over the keys and cut the ribbon!!

After the ceremony, we all got to enjoy Starbucks Hot Chocolate and some delicious cookies from Cookie Cottage. {YUM YUM!!!!!!}

Despite being a chilly {okay, freezing} day, I was so glad I went. It was so nice to see Lisa's dreams come true! Congratulations, Lisa!