(Chelsea Update would like to thank Mary Jo Frank for the information and photos in this story.)
Dexter United Methodist Church (DUMC) will host its annual Habitat for Humanity dinner and silent auction on Feb. 22 at the church, 7643 W. Huron River Dr.
The dinner will be served 4:30-7 p.m. The silent auction is open 3-7 p.m.
Tickets for the Swiss steak dinner are available at the door: $9 for adults, $8 for seniors, $5 for children ages 5-12, and free for children 4 and under.
More than 50 volunteers prepare and serve the meal to several hundred people each year. This year’s menu will feature Swiss steak, mashed potatoes, vegetables, fruit cup, rolls, pizza, dessert and beverages.
Judy Murray of Dexter organizes the silent auction, which has grown from six items to a record 180 in 2013. Items to be auctioned include gift certificates, lessons, home maintenance projects such as painting a room, vacation rentals, handcrafted wooden items, and homemade pies and breads. Call 426-8480 for more information.
The annual event has raised more than $92,200 for Habitat for Humanity of Huron Valley since it started in the late 1990s. Through this fundraiser and other donations, Dexter church members and friends have provided affordable homeownership opportunities for more than a dozen Washtenaw County families.
Proceeds support new construction and renovation projects through the Good News House Coalition, a collection of 18 congregations, including Baptists, Methodists, Unitarian Universalists and other denominations.
This year, the coalition will reconstruct two homes, which Habitat will sell at affordable prices to qualified buyers.
“For several years, instead of building new, we have purchased foreclosed homes,” says Darrell Featheringill, DUMC’s representative to the Good News House Steering Committee in a press release. “We rebuild them to the same standards as a new Habitat build, including adding insulation as required, new bathrooms and kitchens, new doors, fresh paint, etc.”
“Prior to hosting the dinner, the Dexter church had a special collection each Mother’s Day to raise money for Habitat,” says Dan Teare of Chelsea, a member of the dinner organizing committee and a former Good News House leader. “People like to support Habitat, and they get a great, home-cooked dinner for a reasonable price,” Teare says.
