The joy of giving! Thanks to the generous donations and support of local sponsors, our 2020 holiday gift drive set a new record of 382 gifts for children living in Habitat homes this year!

Benefitting 191 children, each child will receive one gift of necessity and one leisure gift to help relieve some of the financial stress experienced by Habitat families during the holiday season.
Despite a difficult year, an outpouring of support from local businesses, church groups, families, staff, board members, and committee members ensured that this year’s gift drive reached its highest collection numbers yet.

Long-time community partners, including Rochester-based Messner Flooring, felt an even bigger need to give back to those who may struggle to provide for their families during the holidays. 

“We wanted to do our part in supporting Flower City Habitat and the immeasurable impact it has on the Rochester community. The Habitat holiday gift drive provided our employees an opportunity to personally bring a smile to children’s faces on Christmas morning,” said Ted Messner, Commercial Flooring Sales Rep at Messner Flooring. “The joy this brought to our company, employees, and hopefully the Habitat children far exceeded anything we could have imagined.”

Habitat families' wish lists included necessities like school supplies, bedding, and clothing for the upcoming year; and some of the most requested toys and games included scooters, LEGOs, and dollhouses. 

In order to keep sponsors and Habitat families safe in the gift exchange process, Flower City Habitat for Humanity staggered the gift donation and pick-up schedule over five days to keep person-to-person contact to a minimum. 
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Thank you to everyone who made this year's gift drive a success! We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a happy holiday season!

Have you ever wondered how Habitat homeowners are doing long after they move in?

Ana Medina is approaching 15 years as a Habitat homeowner in Rochester, and she has been a close friend and mentor to Kiomy Rivera, who just moved into her Habitat home last month!

Please join us to hear Ana's story on Wednesday, June 24th, starting at 7:00pm.
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RSVP here to get a reminder and watch the video below for a teaser.

In addition to Ana's story on Wednesday, we have updated our website with a full schedule, details, and themes for each night (June 23-26).

Each evening is only 1 or 2 hours, so you can join us every night (without losing your whole night), or pick and choose which parts to attend!
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Plus, the online auction is open now! Click the button below for more details or to bid on auction items now.

As many of us reflect on our faith during the holy times of Passover, Easter, and Ramadan, we're especially grateful to be able to share this homebuyer update.

Zuleika and her family have moved into the home co-sponsored by a generous individual donor, Caldwell Manufacturing, and our local Habitat Interfaith Partnership!
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We are so thankful to each and every one of you for coming together to make this home possible.

In a time when the need for safe, affordable housing is even more clear, we are thankful to be celebrating the completion of four new Habitat homes on Holworthy Street.

Over the past few weeks, our construction team has been working with staff only (no volunteers) and maximum health and safety precautions to finish homes that were nearly complete.
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Last week, we turned over four sets of keys and each family is moving in as they can, and as safely as possible.

Although our CEO, Matt Flanigan had to keep his distance, he was grateful to be among the first to say, "Welcome home!" to Kiomy and her family on move-in day.

Check out interviews with Kiomy and Matt from Spectrum News, WHEC News 10, and WROC News 8 who helped us share the great news!
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And our biggest thanks to the Greece Coalition of Churches for sponsoring this home!

The other three families on Holworthy Street are in the process of moving in as well, and we will share updates when possible. We also look forward to having in-person celebrations with the families and house sponsors once it is safe to do so.

Though we have had to make a lot of adjustments, Flower City Habitat's commitment to a world where everyone has a decent place to live is as strong as ever.

You can view our broad operational updates at any time, but please help us keep you informed by updating your email preferences so we can get you more specific information on the topics that you are most interested in.

Our work building homes, community, and hope continues and we thank you for your continued support!

Today is a day where far too many are struggling to make rent payments, often for substandard housing. We know how big the task is before us, but we are also fortunate to share some good news today.

Today is move-in day for Rochester's newest Habitat homebuyers; with several more expected to be ready in the next few weeks!

Both our construction and family services teams continue to practice maximum social distancing and we are working with each family on an individual plan regarding safety, logistics, and timing of move-ins.

This first family has asked for some privacy, so we are respecting that, but we can share that they are excited to now know that "staying home" means the safety, security, and stability that we all deserve.

The kitchen appliances were delivered just after these photos were taken and of course we'll be back to help with landscaping when it's safe for volunteer groups again.

This home, at 96 Holworthy Street, was made possible by generous donations from Thrivent Financial and the Harvest Home Coalition. THANK YOU!

We miss seeing all of our supporters in person, but hope you will join us in saying "Welcome home!" to Rochester's newest Habitat homebuyers!

For over a decade, Flower City Habitat for Humanity (FCHH) has held an annual gift drive for the children of its homeowners and homebuyers. This year’s gift drive will provide toys for 275 children living—or soon to be living—in homes earned through the FCHH homebuyer program.

This year's gift drive was made possible by 10 generous sponsors from the local community, including area organizations such as Excellus Health Plan, Mountain Rise United Church, Caldwell Manufacturing, Allendale Columbia School, and more. 

​Did you know that each Flower City Habitat family contributes at least 300 hours of sweat equity as part of our homebuyer program? Today we had five Habitat families working on the construction sites!

Alongside their family members and our construction team, five Habitat homebuyers participated in the construction of their new homes — directly building their American Dream. After the morning (and working up a good appetite), Amiel’s the Original Submarine provided complimentary sub platters, chips, cookies, and bottled water to everyone on the construction sites to help power them through the afternoon of building. Thank you!

Check out the news stories below to hear from three Habitat families and from our Family Services Manager, Tim Guillemette.