Marshall University to sponsor Habitat House

 

Marshall University is teaming with Huntington Area Habitat for Humanity to build a Habitat House this fall. The house will be built in a neighborhood near Marshall’s Huntington campus.

 

A steering committee of Marshall faculty, staff and students will be working with Huntington Area Habitat for Humanity on fundraising, volunteering and logistics for the project. This is the first time Marshall and Habitat for Humanity have partnered on a project of this scale.

 

MU President Stephen J. Kopp said he anticipates campus-wide participation in what he termed as a “challenging and rewarding endeavor.”

 

“However, this service project will be an important part of the First Year Experience Program designed for members of the Class of 2011,” he said. “This community service project will create a valuable opportunity for our students to become involved and have a direct impact on the problem of homelessness in our community.”

 

Teddy Kluemper III, director of development and communications for Huntington Area Habitat for Humanity, said he is “absolutely ecstatic” about the partnership with Marshall.

 

“Marshall University always has been and continues to be a leader in so many ways for this community,” Kluemper said. “As the director of development for Habitat, a resident of the city of Huntington, and alumnus of Marshall University, I could not be more excited about the contribution they are going to make to this city by providing safe, decent and affordable housing. We are so blessed that the university has agreed to partner with us on such a landmark project.”

 

“Service to our community is an important component of our long-range Strategic Vision,” Kopp said. “It is also a longstanding part of the Marshall identity and mission. A meaningful and practical approach to educating our students in responsible civic engagement is to involve them in a community project that produces tangible benefits, like helping a family in our community build a home.”

 

Huntington Area Habitat for Humanity is a nonprofit, ecumenical Christian ministry, whose mission is to partner with qualified families in need, and provide them the opportunity for safe, decent, affordable housing. To volunteer with the organization, visit www.huntingtonareahabitat.org.