The city's churches may be separated by denominations and doctrines, but nine congregations have combined resources to build a home for a local single mother and her 7-year-old son.
Their actions looked so good to Habitat for Humanity for Greater Chattanooga Area, that the nonprofit wants the churches' example to be a model of how the faith-based community can work together.
"It looks like the kingdom of God here on Earth," says Dominique Brandt, Habitat for Humanity's development director. "It looks like everybody playing together and serving together to help those less fortunate, which is pretty incredible."
Over the past 30 years of its existence, the local organization has had several churches sponsor and build homes. But never has it had churches collectively combine money and manpower to build a home, according to an emailed statement by Habitat spokesperson Karlene Claridy.
The group included four Seventh-day Adventist churches, two United Methodists, two Episcopal and one Evangelical Free Church of America.
Participating churches
› Christ United Methodist Church› Collegedale Community Seventh-day Adventist Church› North River Seventh-day Adventist Church› Ooltewah United Methodist Church› Ooltewah Seventh-day Adventist Church› St. Francis of Assisi Episcopal Church› St. Paul’s Episcopal Church› Standifer Gap Seventh-day Adventist Church› Two Rivers Church
This is the first time Habitat scheduled build days on Saturdays and Sundays to accommodate churches that observe different Sabbaths.
How to help
Churches that want to participate in building and financing the next faith house may contact Dominique Brandt at dbrandt@habichatt.org or 423-756-0507.
The effort started in April when Brandt met with the East Hamilton Ministerial Association to discuss area churches combining resources to help people who need housing. The association includes nearly two dozen churches within nine ZIP codes of East Hamilton County. Brandt also developed relationships with other churches not included in the alliance.
Because of the combined effort, 27-year-old Shan Melvin will own her own home, and she looks forward to one day passing it to her son.
"It's stability for him and his future," says Melvin, who was born and raised in East Lake Courts.
The three-bedroom, two-bath home sits at the 2200 block of Davenport Street in the Glass Farm community.
Melvin lived in a South Seminole Drive two-story duplex for three years. During that time, she endured a leaky roof and numerous central heat and air-conditioner repairs.
Melvin and the churches started building her new home in September. It's scheduled to be complete in March.
The Rev. Louisa Parsons, priest of St. Francis of Assisi Episcopal Church, says she's excited to show that people of different denominations can worker together.
"In this day and time, so often spotlights are put on differences and not on what unites us. The commitment to serve God and to serve neighbor is a basic tenet for all of our denominations," says Parsons, whose church participated in the build.
Each church donated $5,000 for materials to build the home. And members from each congregation participated with labor. Other church members baked and prepared food for the builders. Some churches that didn't have $5,000 contributed what they could and then joined with another church to get the full donation.
Brandt says the collaboration was like watching a glimpse of heaven.
The groundbreaking had four pastors from four denominations, all sharing Scripture and praying for the Melvin family.
"This is Habitat going back to its roots and calling out our faith partners and saying we need to have more engagement from our faith community," says Brandt. "And it's the faith community saying, 'Absolutely. Here we are. Let's do this.'"
Contact Yolanda Putman at yputman@timesfreepress.com 423-757-6431.