Habitat for Humanity of Bay County dedicates its 109th home

Published: Jun. 26, 2024 at 6:33 PM CDT

PANAMA CITY, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) - Yamilka Torres and her four daughters now have a place to call home, thanks to Habitat for Humanity of Bay County. The organization dedicated its 109th home to the family Wednesday morning.

Torres tells us she moved here nearly 16 years ago from Puerto Rico but didn’t know about Habitat’s program until recently. Once she did know, she was quick to apply for a home.

The news that she was selected came in February. Torres was required to contribute 500 hours of her time to the building of the house.

In many cases, people have the help of family to cover those 500 hours, but in Torres’s case, all she had was her eldest daughter’s help as she had no immediate family in the area.

“This was a blessing, they helped me to build this,” Torres said.

Angela Klopf, Executive Director of Habitat for Humanity of Bay County, credits the success of these homes to the community.

“We have the community here that allows us to put these walls up, to build this home. From the sponsorship to the garden, so we are very thankful for that,” Klopf said.

Groups involved ranged from the Navy to Capt. Jack’s Family Buffets.

Those interested in joining the help can do so on Habitat’s website here.