MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — The sound of dozens of hammers striking nails echoed across campus Thursday, Oct. 1, as Middle Tennessee State University students traded textbooks for tools, safety goggles and gloves during the university’s annual Habitat for Humanity panel build.

“I just built this wall, right there” said world languages and cultures student Elizabeth Garrett, of Hendersonville, gesturing to a panel behind her on the grounds of the Student Union Commons. “I love community service. I wanted to come out and help.”

Panel builds are an efficient way to frame houses off-site, one wall at a time, in just one day. MTSU hosted the first panel build in Tennessee in 2015, but the partnership between the two organizations began in 2007 with the Bautista family’s home. This build, cosponsored by MTSU, Middle Tennessee Electric and Exit Realty Bob Lamb and Associates, marks Rutherford County Area Habitat for Humanity’s 217th home.

“(Students) build the walls of a house,” said Jackie Victory, director of campus activities and strategic marketing. “You see the frame of a house at the end.”

At the end of a panel build, volunteers load the panels onto a flatbed truck and drive to the job site for the next crew to install. In this case, the site is about two miles off campus in Habitat’s Legacy Pointe Subdivision, where the panels will be used to frame out a house for the Jefferson family.

Cost of living creates challenges

Affordable housing is a challenge in Middle Tennessee, making Habitat’s work all the more critical. Barriers to homeownership can trap people in cycles of instability and poverty, where fluctuating rent may take up 50% to 60% of a person’s income.

But through the panel build partnership, MTSU students, under the supervision of Habitat builders, help make a difference for families looking for a place to call home.

Victory thinks of the project as a way for the MTSU community to fulfill their True Blue pledge — “engaged in the life of this community. …a recipient and a giver.”

“You do take a step back,” said Victory. “You really think about the importance of giving and living out the True Blue pledge.”

Volunteering with Habitat for Humanity offers the unique opportunity to work alongside future homeowners toward their dream. It’s a misconception that the nonprofit gives away houses.

“Those potential homeowners have a lot of things that they have to do,” said Victory.

Hammer time

A Habitat for Humanity home comes with a mortgage, adjusted for the homeowner’s circumstances. Families also put in hours of “sweat equity,” working on their own homes and others’. A required homeownership course covers everything from home repairs to budgeting to being a good neighbor.

“We try to cover all the bases,” said Megan Hutchings, community engagement coordinator for the nonprofit. “Our families are in a unique situation where they make too much money to qualify for any kind of assistance, but they don’t make enough money to actually go out and apply for a loan to buy a house.”

The process is no easy feat, and a testament to the tenacity and perseverance of community members helped by Habitat for Humanity.

“It’s not as easy as people think it is,” said future homeowner Cle-etta Jefferson. “You have to put in the work this way, but it’s very much so worth it.”

Jefferson, a mom of three, relocated to Middle Tennessee from Louisiana 15 years ago after surviving Hurricane Katrina. She’s looking forward to hosting out-of-town family members when they visit and living in a neighborhood full of familiar faces.

“I like that I get to know my neighbors beforehand,” said Jefferson. “We get to build some type of relationship with our community before we move in.”

For more information about working with Habitat for Humanity, reach out to Megan Hutchings at [email protected].

— Cat Curtis Murphy ([email protected])