Thanks to the grand generosity of an anonymous benefactor, a large pledge from HSHS St. John's Hospital in Springfield, and other donations, a hard-working Springfield grandmother soon will be living in a new home in Springfield.

An anonymous donor gave Habitat for Humanity of Sangamon County $60,000 to go toward the total home-building cost of $100,000, says Executive Director Colleen Stone. The Habitat for Humanity build for the 99th family — known around the area as the "Pope Francis house" — is set to start early in the fall.

Stone says the anonymous donation was offered "to honor Pope Francis for his commitment to social justice and reinvigorating the Catholic Church." Additionally the donor hoped to "provide a unifying, celebratory opportunity for both Catholic and non-Catholic volunteers to work toward a common goal." (As Pope Francis says, "Work confers dignity.") Finally, through the donation, the benefactor hoped to further Habitat's mission of building and preserving homes.

Besides the obvious large donation made by the original donor, HSHS St. John's Hospital recently stepped forward with a pledge for $30,300. The remaining $9,700 came from the Campaign for Justice and Hope, Catholic business owners and organizations, parishes and schools in Sangamon County, and from individuals at the diocesan Curia.

The Pope Francis house is being built for 54-year-old Penney Porter, a woman who has raised her three children and four granddaughters in rental properties. Porter had applied for many loans at different financial lenders and was unsuccessful. That's why she didn't think she would ever be able to purchase her own home. "I didn't have a clue on how to get started on home ownership — what to do, who to see," she says.

Porter finally became involved with Habitat for Humanity through the encouragement of a co-worker. "After complaining at work about trying to purchase my own home, my co-worker suggested I apply for a Habitat home." She was reluctant because she didn't think she qualified for a house. However, her friend brought her an application. That night Porter prayed to God, and applied.

"Amazingly, by the grace of God, I was approved and started to work with and within the program to clean up my finances, accumulate my volunteer hours, and go to classes to help me understand what I need to do to become a homeowner," Porter says.

Stone explains that Porter followed set rules for applying and being approved for a Habitat house. Homeowners who purchase a new or renovated house through Habitat are called "partner families." Each adult who lives in a Habitat house must contribute 250 "sweat equity" hours on their own build.

Porter was an active volunteer in the renovation of the Habitat ReStore, which is located at 2744 S. Sixth St. Home number 99 will be built in Springfield's Harvard Park area on the corner of 9th and Wellesley. It will be a 1,200 square-foot, three-bedroom, one-bath house with a crawl space.

Though builds generally take about four months to complete, Stone hopes that Porter will be in her new home by Dec. 31, giving the grandmother a special place to celebrate the new year with her family. She says members of the diocesan Curia, and students from Sacred Heart-Griffin High School and University of Illinois Springfield are already committed to work on the build.

"We have no build schedules just yet," Stone says, noting she does know that people of various faiths will be participating in building Porter's house.

Stone thinks that it is important that people understand just how important it is for Habitat families to gain their own piece of the American Dream of homeownership. "This is not a charity," she says, pointing out that Habitat homeowner's pay their mortgage and they pay taxes.

"Our homeowners know the generosity of donors and our families are full of gratitude. But they know that Habitat is a hand up not a hand out. That is what really resonates with our homeowners. And, most of our homeowners are the first in their family to own a house," she says.

Porter agrees and sees owning a home as a blessing in many ways. "The glory of being able to own my own home will provide hope, love and freedom for my family today, tomorrow and for generations to come," she says.

For more information on Habitat for Humanity of Sangamon County, call (217) 523-2710 or go to www.habitatsangamon.com.

Contact Diane Schlindwein at .