A Warmer, Safer Home in Brinnon

Kate is a self-described “busy lady.”  Between making potholders and jewelry for local craft shows, sewing quilts for fellow cancer survivors, volunteering at the Brinnon food bank, and writing historical novels, she “doesn’t know what it means to sit down.”

However, getting work done was difficult when she had to avoid her family room/craft room because the heat from her wood stove insert didn’t reach downstairs.  And the periodic brown-outs were more than annoying—they were frightening reminders that the house’s electrical system was dangerously out-of-date and posed a fire hazard.

Now, however, thanks to a no-interest loan and grant from Habitat, Kate’s home has an updated electrical system, improved insulation, and an energy-efficient heat pump. As Kate says, “A house is always better when it’s warmer, when you don’t have to bundle up inside.  The work Habitat did made the house a home.” Her project, the largest Brinnon repair project completed by Habitat to date, was made possible by a grant from First Federal Community Foundation and the hard-working volunteers from Habitat’s Quilcene Store.

If you think these improvements might have tempted her to take a well-earned rest, you don’t know Kate.  Instead, they inspired a flurry of home-improvement projects of her own, such as repainting the interior of the home.  She is delighted that Habitat’s work has “added decades of longevity to the house,” enabling her to stay in the community she cares about so much:  “I love living here.  There are so few of us—we depend on each other to keep things going…I love helping at the food bank.  I want to do it as long as I can walk and move.”

Kate’s gratitude to Habitat is tied to her own ethic of service. “After all the charity work I’ve done and helping people, to have someone do something like this for me really means so much.”

For more information about our repair program visit our repair page.

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