What makes a place your “home”? What is the difference between a house you happen to occupy and the place you think of as home? Is it about your history? Does it depend on other people? What is the relationship of home and family? Is home defined by an internal feeling or by external conditions? Why do we all seek our version of home?
Most of us take comfort from that place we call home. We either wistfully remember what was or we dream about what will be…and for those who never had one, it is what we aspire to. Our desire to make a home, for ourselves and for family is innate to each and every one of us.
Wanting to create home is the foundation of our society. Without home, we have no structure on which to build the more complex levels of community.
Yet there are many people in our country who are not able to afford a decent, forget beautiful home. But, there is hope. I recently read about a GREAT project and terrific home building model in the Green Building Elements newsletter.
Builders of Hope, based in Raleigh, North Carolina is a non-profit that over the past three years has helped rebuild homes and lives by providing safe, affordable housing to working families. There are many benefits as you can well imagine…
- Economic Benefits: Builders of Hope has a unique way to make home ownership a reality. They rescue homes from demolition that would otherwise end up in landfills. These houses are either moved to planned neighborhoods for rehabilitation or rebuilt on-site, using green building standards. All are sold at cost to working families who earn below the median income – people like teachers, police officers, hair stylists, nurses and government workers.
- Environmental Stewardship: By saving teardowns, Builders of Hope is saving millions of pounds of debris from entering our landfills. They are also committed to making these homes environmentally friendly and more affordable to live in by meeting green building and energy efficiency standards. Not as a marketing ploy, but rather to be responsible builders, and create healthy and as cost effective housing as possible for people to stay in over time.
- Social Solutions: Builders of Hope is also all about community. Not just the community they are building for, but also a community of employees by giving the chronically unemployable, the homeless and at-risk youth, the opportunity to learn job skills and other life skills through their work-mentor program. They place participants side-by-side on the job site with mentors and construction personnel. While building these homes for others, they rebuild their own lives…and learn the value of teamwork, resourcefulness, commitment and community.
The founder of this fabulous non profit is Nancy Murray, a former advertising executive and developer who wanted to make a difference in people’s lives. Her principles:
Work hard. Give back. Live a good life. Be a good person.
Builders of Hope has been so successful they are expanding to New Orleans, Louisiana and are looking also at Texas. These revitalized homes do more than provide people a place to live; Builders of Hope builds neighborhoods. Through home ownership, owners take pride in their homes and the surrounding community. This leads to reduced crime, improved public safety, and helps build the local tax base, providing more services in areas where they are desperately needed.
So tell me…I want to know…why do you think people want to create home? What makes your house your home, or if not, where is your home? By leaving a comment, you can help me define this for my book on creating Slow Home. Thanks! And check out this fabulous organization…why don’t we have this in every state?
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13 Comments
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People I know really want to feel like their home is their haven, a place to find refuge from the outside worries etc. It needs to reflect their taste whether casual or very elegant. Personal items and of course I always recomment budgeting for artwork upfront, just as important as the custom draperies…
Karena
Art by Karena -
Home for me is a place where I am surrounded by things I find beautiful, things that comfort me, things that have meaning, and things that allow me to live a full life.
For me, my home is a place where I can express my creativity. My home is a part of me.
We all deserve to live in a place that nurtures and inspires us to be better and do better.
Clearly, your blog has hit a chord with me. Thank you for sharing.
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Having lived in many houses I find that home is where my family is although I am happiest if that house just feels ‘right’ and that’s what I base buying a house on really. I truly love the house we live in now but if we move again I shall move on happily as it is just a house and there are many other houses.
I have felt this way since I started moving around so many years ago as an Au pair – home is where the heart is 🙂
What a marvelous project you featured – very admirable.
Louise Edington
International Au Pair Finder
http://ledingon.aupairnews.con -
What a wonderful organization. I can honestly say that everything I do is because I want to give my family a home. My husband and I have lived in many housed in the past sevral years. We have been unable to buy a home for many reasons and- well, it just sucks. Thank you for your post!
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Home to me is a place where my family is with me, where we can feel safe and comfortable and able to be ourselves, able to relax if we choose, sleep, eat and just live without anxiety or pressure to do or be something we don’t want to do or be. It’s a place for being together with both friends and family, to feel safe and secure. A home is not a building, but people (and pets too!) that love and care about one another being together. I am so thrilled for Builders of Hope and what they and other organizations like them are doing! Thank you for sharing this!
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Thank you for the introduction to Nancy Murray’s work. So, So inspirational! I love her quote “Work hard. Give back. Live a good life. Be a good person.”
For me “home” is more geographical—where I feel most “me”. Sadly, geographically I’m not there now, so my house has become more of my “home”. It’s very small compared to past dwellings & I’m a renter now, so lots of changes, but it’s all good. Although I’m in a small space, I’m still surrounded by my most treasured books (had to sell a lot!), artwork and textiles that give me comfort. Of course, for me, anywhere the dogs are is Home!
I think any item in the home that evokes the feeling of a certain place or person, creates a “homey” feel.
Another lovely post, Irene. Thanks -
This is excellent in these tough economic times! I really like the “green” aspect and the hope it can offer many people. I truly the believe the old saying “home is where the heart is”. Whether you rent an apartment or live in a mansion, home is a feeling more than a place.
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Wonderful organization! Right now I’m in transition and it’s hard for me to define what my home would be for me. I’ve lived in so many houses and/or apartments and I don’t think I’ve ever found that forever home and maybe I never will.
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I am very impressed with Builders of Hope and their programs.The benefits are so wide spread and diverse. Thank you for highlighting Nancy Murray’s good work.
For me, as was mentioned in a previous comment, home is more a feeling than a place. I’ve lived in dozens of apartments, houses, even on a boat. Large spaces, small spaces, dark, light, beautiful, or dingy – each one was home. Home because inside, each place was a reflection of me, a place where I could be myself.
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to me, home is a place where you have security and control. that’s why so many people think of home as refuge- you may not be able to control the actions of your co-workers or fellow rush hour drivers during the day, for example, and home is largely the opposite. it is comfortably predictable in its look, feel,inhabitants, etc. and that feels great for most people against the relative unpredictability of the day.
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Irene, I have always been connected with the concept Pliny the Elder expressed, “Home is where the heart is.” The less I am attached to anything the more joy if feel. I dearly like many things and people but they are all transient.
I do like the Celtic concept of Anam Cara, soul friends. So, maybe there are those being who we are with over and over.
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Thanks for the lead to this wonderful group. I work and live in New Orleans and Texas and will definitely look to see how I can help them.
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My home is where I retreat from the world. Bringing my life into balance and maintaining my spiritual equilibrium requires focused awareness and daily retreat from the world’s stresses.
My home is a place of love, tranquility and restoration. I frequently travel and, although I love travelling, I begin to long for home after approximately eight days (no matter how wonderful of a time I am having). I can pull life back in balance there, which is vital to my well-being. Without balance, a lot of the beauty and grandeur or my existence seems to be lost.
Builders of Hope sounds like an organization providing a terrific service to communities.
