By By ERIN VER BERKMOES / Niles Daily Star
NILES - The Houck families dream of owning their own home came true yesterday afternoon, as a home built by volunteers from the Niles-Buchanan Habitat for Humanity was completed and dedicated.
Scott and Denise Houck and their five children, Josh, 14; Carllie, 11; Dallas, 9, Dyllon, 7 and Tyler 5, will soon be able to move into their new home located a 1364 Ferry St.
The project is an affiliate program of the Jimmy Carter Work Project which took place all over the world, with many homes being built in nearby Benton Harbor and Detroit.
Schmidt added that 232 new homes were dedicated in Michigan on Friday as part of that project and more than 1,000 people have been touched through the project.
Pastor Barry Nichols, who is the associate pastor at the First Church of God in Niles and Denise's brother, said, "It is a real privilege to be here today and to see this family get a new home. They have struggled in the past, but we are thankful for them and all of the people who worked on the project."
Nichols added that he has been overwhelmed by the amount of dedication from everyone at Habitat for Humanity and the family is very blessed to have been chosen to have a home built for them.
Work on the families home began in October, with the foundation being put in, so when spring finally came around work would be able to being as quickly as possible.
Then in early April, the Houck family and Habitat for Humanity volunteers began working to build the exterior and then worked they way indoors.
Coldwell Banker in Niles played a big part in this project as they sponsored this home and made the cost for the Habitat organization a little bit less by doing fundraisers around the community.
The Houck family is more than ready to move from Buchanan into their new home in Niles. They hope to be in by July 24, as finishing touches on the house have to be completed.