 EXIT Realty Corp. International will be partnering again with Habitat for Humanity to bring the dream of homeownership to another deserving family, this time in Cornwall, Ontario. This will be the third Habitat for Humanity build in the area and their first fully-corporately sponsored build. The local Habitat affiliate reports:
Habitat Seaway Valley is pleased to announce their latest Family Partner for a home to be built at 711 St. Antoine Street in Cornwall in the fall of 2010. They are Karen McIntosh and her two children, Meagan, 15, and Matthew, 12.
Karen, Meagan and Matthew currently live on Lemay Street in Cornwall. Karen works for the Upper Canada School Board as a Settlement Outreach Worker, helping new immigrants settle into Canada. Meagan goes to St. Joseph High School.
Mathew suffers from global delay and autism and resides in a group home in Ottawa from Monday to Friday. Currently there is no facility in our community that can meet his needs. Karen has worked extensively with the local Autism Society and S.D. & G. Development Services with the goal of seeing such a group home open in this area.
Because Matthew has no sense of danger, he needs an enclosed yard to be able to be outside on his own. The McIntosh’s current home is on three levels with almost no space for recreation. This leads to unnecessary tension in the household when Matthew is home. “Our Habitat Home will be a Godsend for my family”, Karen remarks. With a house with an improved design and suitable space, Karen’s hope is that, in time, Matthew could be home with his family full-time.
Habitat for Humanity is a worldwide initiative that envisions a world where everyone has a safe and decent place to live. It helps individuals and families in financially vulnerable situations build and buy quality affordable homes by reducing barriers to homeownership. These barriers are reduced by selling Habitat for Humanity homes with no down payment, no-interest mortgages, payments set at 25% of gross income (principal and taxes) and homeowner training and support services.
Habitat is well known as offering a “hand-up, rather than a “hand-out”. Karen will donate 250 hours of volunteer work as her family’s down-payment on their home.
Karen, Meagan and Matthew are very excited about their upcoming journey with Habitat. Before they could only dream of owning their own home. Now, they are about to see their dream become a reality.
The groundbreaking on the McIntosh's home is expected to take place in early September. An EXIT Work Blitz week is also scheduled for September and general registration will be open next week.
A portion of every transaction fee collected by EXIT Realty Corp. International is pledged to its corporate charity, Habitat for Humanity. To date, those pledges exeed $1.68 million. For more information on EXIT Realty's work with Habitat for Humanity, please click here. For more information on Habitat's work around the world, please click here. | 
Email to a Friend
