Community Comes Together To Build Habitat For Humanity House

EAST PATCHOGUE, NY — The local community and 10 New York City students came together to help to begin the renovations of a new Habitat for Humanity home in East Patchogue this week.

Nickesha Medley and her daughter, Shania, hosted the "House Start Demo Day" on Tuesday to get started on the construction of their new home. The volunteers helped to start the demolition and renovations on the foreclosure-purchased Scherger Avenue home.

The students from Xavier High School, used their vacation time to participate in the event, working side by side with the future homeowners, construction staff, and volunteers to begin the renovation.

In addition, local Suffolk County Legislator, Rudy Sunderman, attended the event and welcomed the Medleys to the community.

Medley and her daughter currently live in an attic apartment in Valley Stream, but are looking forward to starting a new life in East Patchogue.

"I look forward to owning a safe and affordable home to spend more time with my daughter and to give her the stability to excel in school and further her education," she said. "We are overjoyed to be partnering with Habitat Suffolk."

As part of Habitat Suffolk’s Home Ownership program, Medley has to complete 300 hours of volunteer time building her future home and homes for other members. In addition, she will perform community service and learn about financial preparation and home maintenance.

"This was a great event, and the start of another successful homeownership story," Middle Island-based Habitat Suffolk CEO Lee Silberman said. "Our mission is to strengthen communities by providing quality, affordable homes and we took another step in achieving that mission for the Medley family today."