Home for the Holidays tour this weekend benefits Habitat for Humanity
Nov. 9—The holiday season is the time of year when many people open their homes to friends and family. This weekend, a few select homes will be open to the whole community.
On November 12 and 13, people can take part in the Home for the Holidays home tour and tour three of Somerset's most beautifully decorated homes while helping a local family get a home of their own.
The annual tour serves as the signature fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity Pulaski County Kentucky, which builds homes for applicants who may not otherwise have the opportunity to become homeowners.
Holly Whitaker, local Habitat for Humanity board member, has been in charge of the fundraiser for several years and clearly sees the impact it's had on Pulaski County families.
"I always say when someone asks me that I'm from God's country, but then it's very disturbing to me when I learn that we have almost 25 percent of our population lower than the poverty level," she said. "There are so many people that don't have adequate heat or water or air conditioning in the summertime. I always say that we give someone the dream of having a home that never even thought that they could have that dream."
The amount that the event brings in for Habitat for Humanity increases every year, said Whitaker; she said she always sets a goal, and credits the generosity of Pulaski's people and businesses for helping them meet that goal year after year.
"We didn't get to have anything in 2020, but in 2019, we had set the goal for $20,000 and we cleared $28,000," she said. "So because (there was no tour in 2020), I set the goal for 2021 at $40,000, and we cleared over $50,000. So hopefully this year, we can exceed that. ... I think God has given me (this year's goal)."
She noted that the money stays right here in Pulaski County to help local families in need of a home.
That money is made by showing off some of the nicest already-existing homes in the community.
"We get sponsorships and sell tickets for a Christmas home tour," she said. "We get individuals to open up their homes to us and have their houses totally decorated for Christmas really, really early.
"We put people all over the homes to help the tours go at a good pace," she added, "and also to point out special things about the home that are unique or historical."
The homes on this year's tour include:
—The home of Andy and Melissa Mount at 301 West Columbia Street in Somerset.
—The home of Scott and Mandy Lynch at 208 College Street.
—Thee Parsonage, a short-term rental property owned by Joe and Kristen Lyons, at 301 East Mt. Vernon Street.
Whitaker noted that the Mount home is a 1900s Queen Anne-style home, "so there are a lot of things that are worthy of pointing out in regard to that home," and the Lynch home also has a significant local history, while Thee Parsonage was formerly a home for the clergy of First United Methodist Church.
"There's so much that they have done to that house," said Whitaker of Thee Parsonage. "They've got a lot of things from the Virginia Theater and different places that they've incorporated into that home."
Tickets are $20 per person and can be purchased at any of the homes for admission to all three homes. The homes will be open for touring on Saturday, November 12 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday, November 13 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Refreshments will be served at the homes, and silent auction items will be on display at Thee Parsonage.
For more information, call Whitaker at 606-307-5761.
