She Can’t Thank Group Enough For Her House

The rent was cheap, so Tamera Lund dodged roof leaks, bathed outside and prayed faulty wiring wouldn’t start a fire in her Post Falls home.

A friend finally steered her to Habitat for Humanity.

The non-profit program offered Tamera the chance to work for a new home and buy it with interest-free payments barely higher than her rent. Her salary as a secretary could handle such a deal, so she applied.

A year of anxious waiting passed before Habitat called with good news. Tamera had just married Chris, a starving artist. They lived with her daughter, Misty, in the drippy 500-square-foot house in Post Falls.

“We just cried when we heard,” says Tamera, who’s 27. She smiles blissfully, enjoying the relief of that moment one more time.

Habitat laid the foundation on a quiet street in Athol. Tamera knew from past volunteer work how to get donations. She sent vendors information on Habitat and was rewarded with some free materials and some at cost.

With Habitat’s basic three-bedroom floor plan in hand, the Lunds began measuring, hammering, sawing. They found used windows, scratched doors, a dented furnace, oversized trusses and yards of orange molding. They sanded, painted and polished and begged friends with building expertise to help. Habitat supported every effort.

Two years into the project, the Lunds decided they had worked long enough. They skipped their bills for a month and spent $1,000 on finishing materials. They moved in, with Misty and her two baby brothers, last June.

They had invested more than 1,000 hours of work - twice the amount Habitat required from them. Habitat let them live payment-free for several months to catch up on bills.

“This is the most incredible thing that could happen to anyone. I love every stick in this house,” Tamera says, breathing in the essence of the comfortable home that costs her only $250 a month. “We don’t regret one second. The harder you work for something, the more it means.”

Service with a smile

I asked where you get the best service and Coeur d’Alene’s Donna Ward told me Coeur d’Alene Barber. While Donna’s husband recovered from a car accident years ago, barber Earl Anderson drove to Deaconess Medical Center twice to trim his hair. Now that’s service.

Donna applauds the crew at Everson’s Jewelery, too. Rhonda Carpenter in Bonners Ferry is loyal to Jalapenos in Sandpoint, and James Simpson and Diana Simpson Bumpus swear by (not at) Coeur d’Alene’s Iron Horse Restaurant.

Any more super-servers out there?

A little birdie told me

If you go to Lake City Playhouse’s “Bye Bye Birdie,” which opened Friday, get the autograph of Coeur d’Alene’s newest television star, Lake City High student Melissa Lamb-Topp.

Melissa’s smile brought a glow to young Linc’s eyes for her walk-on part in NBC’s “Amazing Grace” a week ago. “Bye Bye Birdie,” with Melissa as Kim the ingenue, will run weekends through May 7. Call 667-1323 for tickets.

Intensive care

Mike Bullard wants to heal the world, but he’ll start with Coeur d’Alene. This Wednesday, the peacemaking committee at Mike’s First Presbyterian Church will feature family violence expert Christina Crawford speaking about the healing process. Christina wrote about her abusive childhood as the daughter of actress Joan Crawford in “Mommie Dearest.”

Workshops on family violence and how to overcome it will continue Wednesday evening and Thursday at the church, 521 Lakeside Ave. The program isn’t religious and costs only $5. Call 667-8446 for details.

What does your church do that we should all know about? Share your good news with Cynthia Taggart, “Close to Home,” 608 Northwest Blvd., Suite 200, Coeur d’Alene, ID, 83814; FAX to 765-7149; or call 765-7128.