.: HABITAT CELEBRATES THE INAUGURATION OF THE 1000th HOUSE IN PARAGUAY

Habitat News

HABITAT CELEBRATES THE INAUGURATION OF THE 1000th HOUSE IN PARAGUAY

Habitat for Humanity completed its goal of reaching one thousand housing solutions in the country. Between June 1 to June 6, 2009 the construction of the houses took place in Benjamin Aceval.

June 6, 2009, Benjamin Aceval, Department of Presidente Hayes - Paraguay:
Over 5 consecutive days, the efforts of Habitat for Humanity Paraguay, business partners, volunteers, masons and members of the families were concentrated on the construction of 10 houses in the area of Costa Guazú, 39 kilometers from the capital Asuncion on Transchaco Route.

Throughout the week, the weather was a bit chilly. However, on Saturday morning, the sun was out and everyone participated in the celebration of the 10 houses in 5 days build with great joy and enthusiasm. Pastor Gastón Guzmán gave a short, heart-felt service before Pelusa Rubín (the ambassador of the Habitat Paraguay campaign) highlighted the solidarity experience of those days: "it is just so impressive that on Monday there was nothing and now, 5 days later, the houses are complete and a community has been made through the efforts of all".

On behalf of Habitat for Humanity Paraguay. Mr. Roberto Zub also expressed his gratitude by stating that "More than housing, Habitat for Humanity builds homes not for the people, but with the people. Here, we see how each of these houses was adorned with balloons and plants, a sign indicating that the families are happy owners".

Some members of the receiving family took the stage and publicly thanked Habitat and the volunteers for their help and support over the week. The following list provides the names of the recipients: Ramos, Jourdan, Franco, Centurión Ramos Ruiz Vallejos, Fariña, Oviedo and Perez. Each has participated in the financial training workshops that is required by Habitat for Humanity, prior to the construction of the houses.

On behalf of the National University of Asuncion and its School of Architecture and Design, Architect Ricardo Meyer, as dean of this institution thanked the forum for participation of the students who experienced a week of intense work in the practical task of construction.

In this regard, representatives of Habitat for Humanity stressed that the students showed a great amount of enthusiasm and dedication throughout the week. Without them, Habitat may not have been able to finish the work in the allotted amount of time.

To conclude the opening ceremony and make the blessing, the participants were distributed to their respective houses. They then surrounded the houses and placed their hands on the walls as they prayed to God asked him to take care of the family and to bless the home.

Within this group of houses, there was one house that stood out in particular: it was House number 1000, owned by the Jourdan Family. The construction of the 1000th house is a milestone that will be always remembered in the history of Habitat for Humanity Paraguay.
Notably, an international brigade also joined the construction during the week. Seven volunteers came from the United States while three came from Canada. Everyone had big smiles on their face as they spoke about their experience with the Global Village Program. Furthermore, Nancy, a young American, gave us a short testimony: The people were wonderful and we were happy to be able to help these families.

This event concluded the campaign launched in February, "House Number 1000, Let’s Get to Work!", by adding the special effort of social responsibility that businesses allied to reach this goal, in addition to Habitat for Humanity Chile as a strategic ally.