Oct. 9, 2007

UPLAND, Ind. -- Jenny Peterson is one of the leading hitters on the Taylor (Ind.) University volleyball team. She is also working on a double major in management and marketing and is a member of the Taylor Association of Business Students. On Oct. 13, she will also become a homebuilder.

Peterson is co-director of Taylor University chapter of Habitat for Humanity, which is sponsoring a blitz building day on Oct. 13 to start construction of a home near the Taylor campus.

An expected 60-70 Taylor University students will join Peterson and her co-director Andrew Smith for the project. Teams of 10-person crews will begin work at 7:30 a.m., continuing throughout the day. Peterson and Smith said they expect to make significant progress on three-bedroom home, which first-time homeowner Denise Morris, a mother of three and member of the Taylor University dining commons staff, hopes to occupy in December.

"The foundation should be ready; we believe the floor, walls and roof will be almost enclosed in one day. It is an amazing goal, but with the great group of students we should have it in one day," said Peterson, a junior from Prospect Heights, Ill.

"This is the first year we've had our own project as a campus chapter. We are really excited," said Smith, a senior Biblical literature major from Upland, who added that construction is expected to continue throughout the fall semester.

Smith said that most of the labor on the house is donated, with the only expenses being the materials and services of electricians, plumbers and site managers. The walls were framed during last spring's Youth Conference and have been stored at Affordable Housing Corp., Marion.

The project marks the second major building effort this year for the Taylor Habitat chapter. During spring break, over 90 students traveled to New Orleans, La., to participate in rebuilding efforts following Hurricane Katrina.

For Peterson, who already juggles time between the Taylor volleyball team and her class schedule, the time commitment is a challenge, but worth it. "My roommate and I were laughing about it, (but) God really wants me to be part of Habitat; God has placed the time in front of me," she said. "It is totally by God's hand He has continued to bless this."

"When we serve the people in the community, we are actually serving Christ," Smith said. "That is big for me: to serve God in a tangible way and to know that is what you are doing."

Smith said one of the reasons that Habitat-style projects are successful in drawing large groups of volunteers is because of the visible result at the end of a project day.

"I'm not construction-minded or a building-minded person, but I love being outside and using my hands," he said. "I love using my gifts by swinging a hammer or collecting volunteers for people in need. Whether or not I get to see the person's face, I can sense what we are working for and why we are doing it as it is going on."

Although it will be at least two months before Morris and her sons move into the house, she said she and her sons have already decided to decorate part of the house with Indianapolis Colts colors and photos, the latter being donated by the team.

"We're excited to get working on it so we can get in there," Morris said.

"God gave me the house," exclaimed Morris, who is buying it at a reduced rate through Affordable Housing. "I'm 42 years old and have never owned a home."