WEST PULLMAN, Chicago— Habitat for Humanity Chicago celebrated the completion of the fourth home on its 16-home block in West Pullman at a special Christmas dedication ceremony on Saturday, December 19th. This home was the first of three made possible by Exelon, which has committed to a multi-year, $300,000 partnership with Habitat for Humanity Chicago to ensure that more Chicago families are living in safe, energy-efficient homes.
“One hundred fifteen employees from Exelon and our subsidiary ComEd volunteered over 700 hours to help build this Habitat home for the Marshbanks family,” said Steve Solomon, vice president of corporate relations at Exelon. “They put in the time because they know the Marshbanks’ presence here will make this community stronger. In addition, because we built the home to be energy efficient, it will help reduce their energy costs for years to come.”
The new homeowners, the Marshbanks family, have dedicated 500 volunteer hours to Habitat Chicago’s homeownership program. They are celebrating this holiday season with friends, family, and volunteers who helped build their energy efficient home using sustainable building practices – such as Energy Star approved appliances, high efficiency plumbing fixtures and WaterSense labeled products, CFL lightbulbs and motion sensor lighting – and other practices that will enhance the overall indoor environmental quality (IEQ) of the home.
The home dedication ceremony featured speeches from the Marshbanks family, Habitat Chicago Executive Director, Jen Parks, and Solomon.
Following the brief ceremony, the Marshbanks family cut the ribbon to their new home and invited all supporters inside for a tour. Guests were in the holiday spirit as they welcomed home first-time homeowners with carols and hand-written notes that hung on the home’s very first Christmas tree.
For more information regarding Habitat Chicago, its partnership with Exelon, or the Marshbanks family home dedication visit habitatchicago.org or visit Habitat for Humanity Chicago’s Facebook page and follow @HabitatChicago on Twitter.
