Homeowner Robin Gunn and daughter Jahyria, 7, enjoy the front porch of their new home in Anniston, Ala.

Anniston Answers the Call to Build
by Leigh Powell

"I'm not paying rent, I'm paying a mortgage now," new Habitat homeowner Rinique Simmons proudly says. "I can paint my room any color I want. I can plant any flower I choose in my yard, and keep it up the way I want to."

It's just that sort of empowerment that often comes with Habitat homeownership. And while the simple, decent houses built in Anniston, Ala., during the 2003 Jimmy Carter Work Project are not fancy, they are a fresh start for the families who will live in them. In fact, it's the often-overlooked things that excite some homeowners most: clean bathtubs, safe backyards for their children to play in, and the independence and self-respect that come from owning their own homes.

Clearly, there would be no argument from Simmons: "I like nice things; I think everyone does," she says. "And when you work as hard as some people, you want to come home to a nice place--you know, a comfortable place."

Prior to the work project, her housing situation was far from "comfortable."

Simmons made a home for her two sons--Tomaree, 11, and Gerald, 4--in a small two-bedroom house with structural problems. In addition to constant upkeep problems with the house, Simmons worried about the neighborhood, which was plagued by violent crime and drugs. Tomaree's autism and the effect of the unhealthy environment on his condition weighed especially heavy on Simmons' mind. She dreamed of a safe neighborhood within Anniston where both of her sons could flourish.

Nestled between Birmingham, Ala., and Atlanta, Anniston is a small city with a population of approximately 24,000 people--no bustling metropolis. Plagued by economic and environmental challenges, the population is actually declining in Anniston, rather than growing.

But no one should mistake Anniston for a town that has given up. And Habitat for Humanity of Calhoun County is helping lead the community's revitalization.

"We will be continuing to build new houses," HFH of Calhoun County executive director Dana van Ekris says. "We are also expanding the repair program. ... We have a lot of low-income families who own homes but can't maintain them."

During the JCWP, 35 new houses were constructed in the Wellborn Manor neighborhood. One additional house was built and 23 houses renovated through the West Anniston Revitalization Project, which took place the same week in a nearby neighborhood. All of the activity was linked to Anniston's certification as a 21st Century Challenge community.

A program of Habitat for Humanity International and spearheaded locally by a Habitat affiliate, the 21st Century Challenge is an initiative in which affiliates work within a collaborative effort to eliminate substandard housing by a specific date. In order to eliminate substandard housing by 2020, the Anniston community must build or repair approximately 1,500 houses.

Admittedly, renovations aren't always a possibility. Robin Gunn would have loved to renovate her "old family home," but it had reached a state of such disrepair that it would have been more costly than new construction. A leaking roof, a collapsed front porch, faulty wiring--this and more plagued Gunn's former house, which had been built by her grandparents around 1940.

A single mother, Gunn works two jobs to support herself and her 7-year-old daughter, Jahyria. The everyday pleasures of her new Habitat house delight her most: "Coming in and kicking off my shoes--just lying down and being comfortable."

Beyond providing decent and adequate housing for families like Simmons' and Gunn's, Habitat's efforts in the community are meeting even more desperate needs as well.

A case in point: Jonell Gorman and her 36-year-old severely multi-handicapped son, Chris. In their former rental house, Chris crashed into doorways with his wheelchair and occasionally rolled backward into the space heater they used for warmth. Gorman's constant fear was that Chris would turn on the stove or oven and accidentally burn himself. A ramp was added to their porch, enabling Chris to leave the house, but the ramp's steep pitch made exiting a difficult and dangerous process.

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