Careers Life at Huber Huber House-Build Brings Joy to Atlanta Habitat Family

Huber House-Build Brings Joy to Atlanta Habitat Family

The holidays are a season of gratitude and happiness.

That’s certainly the case for Atlanta Habitat for Humanity homebuyer Craig Strickland and his family as they teamed up with the J.M. Huber Corporation to build the Stricklands’ first home.

“This was a Christmas and New Year’s gift at the same time,” says Strickland. “Although we worked on the house ourselves, it was an awesome gift to have Huber employees volunteer to help us. We are overwhelmed with joy.”

“The Huber-employee volunteers were amazing and dedicated to making our first Holiday-House build a success,” says Lisa Y. Gordon, president and CEO of Atlanta Habitat. “Their support is helping us to continue our record-breaking success to empower more families through our homeownership and critical home repair programs.”

Employees from Huber’s offices and plants in Atlanta, Commerce, Fairmount, Kennesaw, Marble Hill and Warner Robins, Georgia, joined the Stricklands in building their four-bedroom home in Atlanta’s Center Hill neighborhood over an eight-week period.

Atlanta Habitat’s first-time homebuyer program requires homebuyers to complete 250 hours of “sweat-equity” in constructing their homes and pay an affordable, 30-year mortgage loan.

Strickland is married, has one son, and works in construction. He learned something new from Huber employee-volunteers every Saturday during the build. “From the siding installation to roofing, our house contains some of the best new material you can use to build a home,” Strickland says.

The Huber House was constructed using Huber Engineered Woods (HEW) products, including AdvanTech® subfloor assembly products and ZIP System® roof and wall products for a building enclosure. Using HEW’s building materials added to the affordable, high-quality construction of this Atlanta Habitat home.

The Huber team joined the Stricklands for their house dedication at noon on Saturday, December 15, 2018. Members of Habitat for Humanity Atlanta’s leadership team, board and build team were present at the ceremony, as well as numerous Huber executives and Huber family representatives.

Huber’s sponsorship is part of a new, national strategic partnership with Habitat for Humanity International, and the first house-build for the 135-year-old, family-owned company in Atlanta. The sponsorship will help Habitat offset the cost of construction and materials, thus making homeownership affordable with several low-income families who may not qualify for a conventional mortgage. This partnership represents the company’s commitment to donate 1 percent of its net income annually to non-profit organizations.

“It has been a sincere pleasure for Huber and its employees to participate in helping the Strickland family build their first home in partnership with Habitat for Humanity,” says Mike Marberry, President & CEO of Huber. “Habitat’s vision that everyone needs a decent place to live aligns closely with Huber’s corporate values, which encourage teamwork and support for one another on the job, as well as helping others in the communities where we live and work.”