News

We’re often featured in our local news outlets and will update that information here, along with our quarterly newsletters!

June 2026 Newsletter

Our third of the four homes in the Gorham Lane neighborhood is well underway, and our latest family is so excited!

Meet the Bevans

Jonathan and Christa Bevan, along with their young children Silas and Margot, are the latest family to move into the Gorham Lane neighborhood.

“We are most excited to finally have a place where we can grow perennials—both literally and metaphorically—and put down roots for our family. We have always dreamed of having a place of our own where we could raise our kids, and Habitat is finally helping make those dreams come true!”

Thanks to Silver Maple!

In early May, our local heroes at Silver Maple Construction helped jump start the construction on our third house in the Gorham Lane neighborhood.

From our architecture drawings and using our building materials, Silver Maple created and constructed the wall panels and trusses in their factory over the winter—saving our all-volunteer construction crew months of hard work! Over three days in May, the Silver Maple crew transported the wall panels to our prepared foundation and erected them into the house frame.

On a Saturday, a hearty group of 22 Silver Maple volunteers showed up to help finish the framing, raise the trusses, and sheathe and tape the roof. Their expertise and enthusiasm made the whole experience not only productive but fun! In just four days, we had a “dried in” house that our own building crew is continuing to work on this spring and summer.

More Local Thanks

We also want to thank Mountain Builders of Bristol, who came along shortly after Silver Maple completed their work to put the trim around the roof. Following the installation of the trim, Friend Construction of Middlebury put on the shingles. A huge thank you to all these companies helping the volunteer work crew begin work with a completely enclosed house.

Sharing Her Love for Art

Judy Albright is a well-known artist in our area and has generously supported our Habitat chapter in many ways. Over the past five years, she has donated one of her paintings to each of our partner families as they move into their new homes. Below, she presents our first Gorham Lane homeowner with a painting.

Judy has also hosted an “Art for Humanity” fundraiser, where she auctions her artwork and donates the proceeds to our chapter. And this year, Judy held her Open Studio May 23-24 in Middlebury. She offered a collection of 30 paintings ranging in size from 9”x12” to 12”x16” at no cost with a $25 donation to Habitat. She raised $635 for Habitat!

Judy, we can’t thank you enough for your continued support and for bringing art—and love—into our homes!

Meet Our Newest Family!

Carl, Elaina, and their two boys can’t wait to move into their new home. Their home at 35 Gorham Lane in Middlebury is nearly complete and ready for them to move in in March 2026. They are excited to be part of the community and put down roots, and the boys are thrilled to have their own bedrooms and room to play! The whole family is happy knowing they have a home with a yard, and space to grow.

Download the Summer 2025 Newsletter.

PLEASE NOTE: As of January 2026, we’ve moved to an online newsletter to save money! Please send us you email contact at habitat.addison@yahoo.com to continue receiving the newsletter. We value your interest and support!

Generous Local Support from M&T Bank

Spring 2025 – We are thrilled to announce that Habitat for Humanity of Addison County has been selected to receive a grant from the M&T Bank Charitable Foundation!

First announced in 2022, the Amplify Fund is a $25 million philanthropic investment that was created to provide further support in the legacy People’s United communities throughout New England and New York.

During the first and second rounds of giving, more than $20.1 million was awarded to 173 nonprofit organizations through a series of RFPs focusing on environmental initiatives, mission-driven and capacity-building work, community and tenant organizing, and financial empowerment, in addition to collaboratives working to advance equity.

Grantees in this third and final round of funding include nonprofit organizations like Habitat for Humanity of Addison County that are centered on advancing financial inclusion and spurring economic growth and prosperity, with a particular focus on creating equitable change through homeownership. Given our commitment to building and supporting affordable housing, we applied for participation and were selected! This grant will help us complete the construction of three more affordable homes in Addison County over the next three years. Thank you, M&T Bank!

Naylor & Breen Make the Day

In early September, Naylor & Breen Builders of Brandon—including their hands-on leader, President Tanner Romero—joined forces with our regular crew of volunteer builders on the currently active Gorham Lane construction site.

With the exterior walls up, Naylor & Breen arrived with an expert crew, including a very large crane, to raise the trusses. Silver Maple Construction of New Haven joined in with their crew to sheath the roof.

We’re enormously grateful to Tanner and his crew for their help in this crucial step. Not only did they ensure a safe and professional process, but they also allowed our somewhat older volunteers to remain safely on terra firma. Thank you Naylor & Breen!

A Big Thank You to Our Weekly Construction Volunteers

Since we are a 100% volunteer organization, including our Board Members, we understand the importance of saying “thank you” for a job—or jobs!—well done.

To show our appreciation to this hard-working team who work at least once a week on our building sites, we teamed up with local deli Grapevine Grille to deliver a stupendous lunch of homemade sandwiches and delicious snacks to the site. A meal well earned! Thank you to all our volunteers!

First Gorham Lane Home Under Construction!

The first of our four Gorham Lane homes is well under construction and looking great! Our newest family, Heidi Wilhelm and her two children are getting excited. “The children are excited to be in their school district full time, with easier access to school sports and friends,” says Heidi. And Heidi is looking forward to having some personal space!

Booth Woods Home Receives Best of the Best Award from Efficiency Vermont

April 2024

Each year, the residential and commercial teams at Efficiency Vermont review all of the projects that were enrolled in their new construction programs to consider for the Best of the Best Awards.

We’re proud to announce that our second of three homes in Booth Woods has been awarded the 2024 “Best Residential New Construction” in the “Affordable Housing Project” category.

About the Award

A panel of judges who are technical experts in construction and building science made the selection based on it being an “all-electric, energy-efficient, and volunteer-built home.”

The panel examines the level of energy efficiency based on what is called the HERS score (Home Energy Rating Score), which is conducted by a third party rater. According to an Efficiency Vermont representative, “This score gives us information about things like the level of air infiltration (the lower the better), the energy load of the home, and how it compares to standard construction practices. We also look at design features, materials selection in regard to indoor air quality and carbon intensity and unique qualities of the home.”

Speaking particularly about the award-winning home, he said, “There were many aspects of this project that caught our attention, including the creative wall assembly approach (no structural sheathing), the volunteer power that went into the project, the efficiency of the home, and the use of new technologies like the exterior insulation.”

About Efficiency Vermont

As the nation’s first Energy Efficiency Utility, Efficiency Vermont has helped Vermont avoid over 13.2 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions and has received the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR program Partner of the Year – Sustained Excellence award for the last eight consecutive years. Efficiency Vermont works with partners to help our state transition to more affordable, low carbon energy use through education, incentives, and support for our clean energy workforce. Learn more at www.efficiencyvermont.com.

A Day of Landscaping!

October 2023

On a sunny October Saturday in the Booth Woods neighborhood of Vergennes, our newest family, some hardy Habitat board members, and the Vermont Nursery and Landscape Association (VNLA) teamed up to get to work.

This is the second time the VNLA has generously volunteered to design and install landscaping at a Habitat for Humanity of Addison County home. Together we planted low-maintenance street trees, woody shrubs, and perennials, as well as some wonderful sod to create a lawnspace. A small walkway was also installed. This planting creates a simple and beautiful landscape that is easy to maintain for a young family!

Board member Steven Ingram hard at work with homeowner Elizabeth Poquette.

Newest Residents Settle In

Habitat for Humanity of Addison County dedicated its newest home on July 26, 2023, with mother-daughter homeowners Janet Brunet and Elizabeth Poquette and Elizabeth’s son, Thatcher.

As the family was moving into the three-bedroom home in the Booth Woods neighborhood of Vergennes, they paused to celebrate with Habitat board members and work crew volunteers.

“As soon as you move in, it’s not a house anymore, it’s a home,” Habitat board President Gary Sarachan told the family. “Habitat is thrilled for you, and we wish you the best and will always be here for you.”

Brunet thanked the work crew volunteers who she and Elizabeth have gotten to know over the last year as they worked together building the home. “These guys were amazing,” she said, praising their selfless dedication.

Board member and work crew volunteer Dave Furney responded, “Don’t think for a second that it was selfless. Seeing your joy is just such a huge reward.”

The new home is Habitat’s second in the Booth Woods neighborhood. Work is under way on a third home next door. The innovative, energy-efficient homes were all designed by Middlebury College students under the guidance of local architect John McLeod of McLeod Architects.

Read more information on becoming a Habitat for Humanity of Addison County homeowner.

Habitat Has Flipped!

July 2023

The foundation for our latest home design was literally flipped over by a crane one sunny morning in July.

Due to its unique construction, which sits above the ground as opposed to on a concrete slab, workers at the construction site opted to thoroughly waterproof and insulate the 80’ x 16’ base upside down rather than having to work on their backs underneath.

Once the waterproofing system was complete, we called in a crane to lift the platform and “flip” it so the waterproofed plywood is on the bottom where it belongs.

Why the unconventional construction?

The Middlebury College students in John McLeod’s studio architecture class, who have designed more than six award-winning homes for Habitat since 2018, were challenged to envision a home that didn’t rely on concrete. The cement industry is one of the main producers of carbon dioxide, a potent greenhouse gas, and concrete causes damage to the most fertile layer of the earth.

With the home’s base secured, the ensuing experience was something like a modern barn raising: the crane continued its work by lifting into place the four outer walls that the construction crew had assembled prior to the flip.