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Dave Bezaire
A team of Rincon Country West volunteers, including Greg, Cathy, Jim, Steve, Bruce, and Terry, lift a wall assembly into place.
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Dave Bezaire
Gerry Keener holds a board in place as Sandy Getter drives the nail.
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Dave Bezaire
Juan Maranyi and Dave Pedersen install the "doubler plate" atop a wall.
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Dave Bezaire
Terry Baughman, from Ohio, using the chop saw.
Story by Jeff Crider, photos Dave Bezaire
For 27 years, Gerry and Carolyn Keener have traveled across the US and around the world building homes as Habitat for Humanity volunteers. These days, Gerry Keener leads a team of snowbirds from Rincon Country West RV Resort who build houses that are sold to low income families in Tucson who could never qualify for conventional financing.
Families that purchase Habitat for Humanity homes have to have a regular income and every adult in each household must invest at least 200 hours of “sweat equity” helping to build future homes. “One of the blessings of the Habitat program is that families buying their home assume a no interest mortgage and their monthly payments will not exceed a third of their income each month,” Gerry Keener said .
Money for Habitat for Humanity projects comes from donations from individuals, businesses, corporations, in kind donations, as well as the money that homeowners pay for their homes which is recycled into the future homes.
Last winter, 38 men and women volunteers from Rincon Country West RV Resort helped build 14 new Habitat for Humanity homes in the Tucson area. “We didn’t do all of it” Keener said, “but our hands were involved in 14 different houses. This year, 13 houses are under construction.”
Volunteers depart from Rincon Country West every Thursday during the winter months to work on the Habitat for Humanity projects. “In the morning, there is a list of things that need to be done and our volunteers choose where they want to work. Some people in our crew have been doing it as long as 14 years,” Keener said.
Volunteering can be very empowering for snowbirds because the experienced builders and painters are paired with less experienced volunteers so they can learn new skills. The projects involve everything from framing to caulking and painting to digging ditches.
Carolyn Keener said some snowbirds specifically come to Rincon Country West each winter so they can be part of the resort’s Habitat for Humanity team. The Keeners said they derive great personal satisfaction from being involved in Habitat for Humanity projects.
“We want to be part of the community and not just stay confined behind the security gate,” Carolyn Keener said. “This is our way of giving back to the community. We were able to retire early and we knew we just didn’t want to sit around and do nothing,” she said, adding “working with Habitat for Humanity has been a very rewarding retirement.”
For more information about winter activities at Rincon Country RV Resort, please visit its website at www.rinconcountry.com.