In 2012, Sacramento's Habitat for Humanity built homes for six families in Sacramento County and 23 families in Nicaragua, providing a safe and decent place to call home for 24 children in Sacramento and 115 in Nicaragua. Volunteers and companies that help support the local chapter of Habitat for Humanity were honored at the 19th annual Hammy Awards Dinner. The two photos below show most of the individuals and companies honored: Left to right: John Brannen, Ken Cross (SHFH CEO), Keith Hummell (Ki Gifts and Custom Framing), Jerry Dennis (Homewood Lumber), Gordon Herscher, Norman Scheel (Norman Scheel Structural Engineering), Penny Workman and Mary Whitmore (United Surgical Partners), Da

On August 8, a team of 32 college students from across the country will arrive in Davis, CA on bicycle. Not an unusual sight for such a bike-friendly town. However, these cyclists are traveling with Bike and Build, a non-profit that organizes cross-country bicycle trips which benefit affordable housing groups. Each team member raised $4,000 on their own to participate in this trip. The South Carolina team left Charlotte, SC on May 23 and is quickly approaching the Sacramento area on bicycle. Their trip has taken them through from coast to coast, through 13 states, stopping in Oklahoma, Colorado, Utah, Idaho and Oregon to build homes for families in need. The trip of 4,143 miles officially

New Sacramento City Councilman Jay Schenirer said he wants to improve Sacramento’s neighborhoods. He’s approaching neighborhood groups because he believes local activism is essential for change. Schenirer, who represents 19 neighborhoods including Oak Park, Curtis Park and Brentwood, hosted a driving tour for The Sacramento Press on a rainy Friday. Neighborhood involvement was a topic that came up frequently as he talked about the troubles, successes and quirks of District 5. “People have been here a long time,” he said, as he drove around the Hollywood Park neighborhood. “They take a lot of pride. They have a good neighborhood association.” As Schenirer drove through South Oak Park, i

 Ashley Tully of Sacramento Habitat for Humanity attended the monthly membership meeting to introduce us to their program and to encourage participation by our membership. There is an immediate opportunity for families in need…with the ability to make small monthly mortgage payments, whose credit record can demonstrate responsibility, and who has the desire to help themselves and other families in need…to be able to own a home! Sacramento Habitat for Humanity (SHfH) is a non-profit housing ministry that works with selected, low-income partner families who want to learn what it takes to become responsible homeowners. Qualified families will partner with SHfH to build and purchase their ow

On Saturday, over 30 Democrats and friends helped build a house for a Sacramento family. When the team arrived, they found an empty lot, with only a concrete foundation and piles of lumber that would soon become the walls of a home. By the end of the day, the structure of a home had replaced the empty lot. Event organizer, James Schwab said, "We helped to build a house but we also built friendships and relationships that will help us build a better Sacramento in the future." The cold, foggy morning did not dampen the volunteers' spirits. After touring a recently completed nearby home, the team received instructions from site supervisor, Terry Hardin and set to work building a new, LEED ce

Thursday afternoon, about 50 seniors, homeless and other community members participated in the Sacramento Housing Alliance Affordable Housing Bus Tour. The tour surveyed 10 different housing options and stopped to provide in-depth tours of three housing complexes. Guided by Shamus Roller, director of the SHA, Ken Cross, CEO of Sacramento Habitat for Humanity and Paul Ainger, Mercy Housing project developer, the four-hour tour began and ended at the SHA office in Midtown. "It's important to know what affordable housing means," Ainger said. According to the federal government, housing is considered "affordable" when a person renting or buying it spends no more than 30 percent of his or her