Article by: Houston Chronicle

HomeAid Houston and builder captain First America Homes, the Homebuilding Division for The Signorelli Company, are partnering on an upcoming construction project for Family Promise of Lake Houston (FPLH).

The project is a Day Center called Promise House, in Humble, that will provide counseling and administrative offices, locker rooms, bath facilities, a family room, a kitchen, a child’s playroom, and a dining room and library. Families facing homelessness in north Houston will be utilizing the new facility to help stabilize their daily lives with the help of FPLH. The Day Center is designed with a home-like setting to help instill a feeling of security and encouragement. Promise House is a 4,224-square-foot plan that will replace the existing FPLH offices and will double its current capacity.

“This upcoming project with FPLH fits perfectly with HomeAid’s mission: To build new lives for homeless families and individuals through housing and community outreach,” said Carl Salazar, executive director of HomeAid. “This agency addresses the needs of families who have experienced huge challenges that have not always been foreseen, and helps them reclaim their independence. We are looking forward to getting this project underway with First America Homes.”

Families receiving assistance from FPLH are reeling from a variety of crisis situations. A recent client at FPLH is serving the needs of a family of four children, a mother and a husband who is a veteran and who had been injured at his job. The children are ages 11 months to eights years old.

“When I met James and Cristal,” said Carole Brady, executive director of FPLH, “I discovered that the father’s eye had been injured in Iraq due to shrapnel. He returned to the US and was able to get work at a sheet metal company until he injured his good eye after an accident on the job. His company did not have workman’s comp insurance.”

A maze of misdirection through bureaucracy led to a long period of no work and no income. “The first thing the father told me when we met at FPLH was, ‘I want to take care of my family, can you help me?’”

James and Cristal were model clients. They completed all of the required classes, Cristal found work, and also started college part time to become a nurse. James worked hard to re-start his benefits and their children are thriving.

In addition to HomeAid and First America Homes, FPLH is also receiving funding from the PetSmart Charitable Foundation, who will pay for a “pet condo” on the property, allowing families to keep their pets as they work to improve their situation. The grant is part of a national agreement with the Family Promise organization. Additional funders include The William Stamps Farish Fund, Albemarle Foundation, Ascentium Capital and Avis Charitable Foundation.

For more information about HomeAid Houston visit www.homeaidhouston.org or call 281-970-8970.