Family selected for new Habitat home

Habitat for Humanity of Flathead Valley (HFHFV) welcomed Aug. 11 the Ratchye family of Jeff, Melinda, 2-year-old daughter Ellura and 6-month-old son Tavian, to soon call the East Second Street Whitefish Habitat build site "home."

"The selected family is absolutely wonderful," Chris Hyatt, executive director of HFHFV, said. "The Ratchyes are folks who really get it. The family selection committee was impressed that they already have savings accounts for their young children. This is truly a hand up and we at Habitat are so pleased to enter into this partnership."

Jeff, receiving manager at Snappy Sport Senter, and Melinda, a busy stay-at-home mother, are Montana natives who currently reside in a Kalispell rental apartment.

Even with the income from Jeff's steady job and the couple's conservative spending, the family pays more than 30 percent of their gross annual income toward housing costs, an indicator of substandard housing conditions, according to Housing and Urban Development and HFHFV.

The family has, like so many hard-working families in the Flathead Valley, struggled to create stability for their children through home ownership. According to the Habitat philosophy, safe, decent and affordable housing is critical to the education, health and financial success of Flathead Valley residents. Habitat is determined to make homeownership a possibility for deserving local families.

In addition to working with individual families, Habitat strives to empower communities through strengthening the family unit. The Habitat philosophy says, when families succeed, communities succeed.

"We know that children of homeowners are less likely to become teenage mothers than children of renters and that homeowners are more likely to vote than renters," Hyatt said. "So Habitat has the unique opportunity to make a difference in our community, starting with creating stability for one family who is willing to work at it."

The Ratchyes know well the challenges that accompany a childhood without geographic stability. The couple has had much experience moving residences growing up, as Jeff is a proud son of an Army father and Melinda's father worked in the construction business.

In fact, the couple's current apartment rental is Melinda's 42nd home.

The Ratchyes are overjoyed by this opportunity to continue living and working in the Flathead Valley, where they have long desired to set down roots. Just days after the selection was made final, the Ratchyes were swinging hammers and writing thank-you notes to key affiliate partners, eager to begin completing their 'sweat equity" hours.

In their own words, "We're ready and willing to put the work in to make this dream a reality. We ask for a hand up not a handout. We are ready to work for our future, we just need a little help from someone who will believe in us and bridge the gap."

Habitat selects families based on need, ability to pay a 30-year zero-interest mortgage, and the willingness to partner with the organization to contribute 500 hours of 'sweat equity" toward the construction of their own home.

Selected families must earn between 20 and 60 percent of the area median income for Flathead County and are required to attend both first-time homebuyer classes and participate in the affiliate's volunteer family support committee mentoring program that covers the topics of financial literacy, home maintenance and adjustment to new responsibilities.

The Whitefish build is a partnership between Habitat and the Whitefish Area Land Trust, a division of the Whitefish Housing Authority that is providing the land, and Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, a national Lutheran charity organization providing a significant portion of funding to support construction costs.

Habitat has also received grant funding from the Whitefish Community Foundation and other local foundations and businesses.

"As a person that comes from the for-profit world, I understand the importance of fiscal responsibility today more than ever. Because of a multitude of enthusiastic volunteers who have truly stepped up, we've been able to drive down our overhead and administrative expenditures to five percent of total expenditures. We feel very good about that," Hyatt said.

To learn more about Habitat's activities call 257-8800.