In 2009, a property on Township Road in Ashland was a resting spot for a mobile home. The rundown structure was cramped at nearly 700 square feet and inadequately prepared to house a family. 

Today much has changed on the property. 

The mobile home has had an extension attached, constructed by volunteers in hopes of giving a local family the chance to live a more comfortable life. 

The Township Road property is not the only land in the Ashland area to undergo this transformation. The Housing Partners of Ashland County have constructed, purchased and renovated 23 homes according to the organization’s website. 

Housing Partners of Ashland County is a non-profit organization. Members of the HPAC, alongside volunteers and donors, work together to renovate these homes and then sell them at reasonable prices to aid families in the Ashland area that may be struggling financially. 

Many members of the HPAC are motivated by their Christian faith and a desire to see the community and its members thrive. 

Housing Partners 2017 President Janet Enzor wrote about the satisfaction that comes along with the work she does with the non-profit in the HPAC’s holiday newsletter.

“I knew the joy of helping families find ‘their home,’” Enzor said. “But as this added even a deeper dimension  as families that saw home ownership as an impossible dream found it to become reality for them.”

To be eligible to benefit from the HPAC, community members must apply on the non-profit’s website and meet the guidelines and criteria that have been determined. 

Some of the requirements include: Having the financial ability to continue to afford and maintain the house, committing time to help out with the renovations and promising to maintain the house.

In his portion of the newsletter, HPAC Executive Director Emmet Justice described that while the registration process for the housing project may have changed over years, the original mission of the project remains the same: To give a family a home. He believes that setting the family up for success in their new home will benefit the community as a whole.

“We win if these things happen,” Justice said. “Children are more likely to finish high school, attend schooling after high school and own their own homes.”

While the local, charitable housing projects may benefit the community as large, it is still an expensive, difficult, and long process to provide the houses with refurbishings and furniture. Due to these costs, the HPAC relies on volunteers to help out with the physical construction of the homes, as well as monetary donations to pay for additional costs. 

Currently, the HPAC is renovating a duplex on W. Main Street. Many volunteers from the community have helped to install 36 new windows and a new roof over the past year, but there is still much work to be done. 

With the exterior renovated, the HPAC plans to return the house back into a single- family home, according to the holiday newsletter. These renovations will begin in early 2017.

Once the home on W. Main Street is completely renovated, the HPAC will continue onto its next project to help another local family in need of a better living situation. 

“I am proud to be part of this great organization with gifted, godly people,” Enzor said.