The Perry family was overwhelmed with gratitude as the father and son entered their new home, built by Knights of Columbus for their annual building effort.
During an evening celebrating the completion of the new home, the Perrys described their amazement for the charity and sacrifice of the Knights during the building process. Before stepping into their new residence in Whitely City, Ky., the father and his teenage son had shared a room with other relatives and lived off a yearly salary of approximately $21,000. By contrast, the Perrys new home has three bedrooms, two bathrooms, all new appliances, a septic system and heat pump.
Since 2001, the Knights of Father Sikora Council No. 7992 and Nativity Catholic Church in Burke have partnered with the Appalachian Construction Crew Inc. and traveled to Whitley City to build homes for families in one of the most impoverished counties in the country.
The Knights efforts, which include strenuous physical labor, long building days and weeks away from their families, is made possible by their faith and the invitation to allow God to guide their work, according to Bob Corsi, the Knights of Columbus Appalachia Coordinator at Nativity Church in Burke.
This year, the pastor at St. Mildred Church in Somerset, Ky., Father Carlos A. Martinez, led 19 parishioners from Nativity along with 11 others to encounter Christ through building, fellowship and prayer at Good Shepherd Chapel in Whitely City.
Despite rainy weather during this year’s building effort, the crew completed all the exterior, including two porches, in the first five days of work. The house was then blessed by Father Martinez and the crew continued to build and finish the interior of the house. The final inspections were completed the week of June 24 and the family moved in shortly after.
When the building effort began 24 years ago and 26 houses ago, the Knights decided that the only requirements a family needed to meet were that they owned the land, could cover taxes and insurance on the home, and would not sell their home for 10 years. The families that Knights have served have precarious living conditions. Some include families that feared their electrical systems were a fire hazard or have suffered illness due to mold exposure. Since the establishment of the building effort, the Knights have raised more than $1.2 million for construction to continue supporting families in need.
