‘100 Homes for 100 Families’

Princetonians aiding Martin House’s provision of affordable homes in Trenton.

By: Dennis O’Neill
   Strangers who drive through the Wilbur section of Trenton are apt to roll up their windows and push a little harder on the accelerator. The dilapidated buildings and vacant lots that mark the landscape of the state capital’s poorest neighborhood do not typically inspire visions of a vibrant and growing community, but rather the harsh life of the desperately poor.
   On Saturday the Martin House Community for Justice Foundation of Trenton sponsored a groundbreaking ceremony for six new homes to be built on Grant Avenue as part of its 100 Homes for 100 Families Campaign.
   Wilbur residents and Trenton city officials – including Mayor Douglas H. Palmer – gathered with volunteers and donors to celebrate a housing campaign that hopes to transform that community, one home at a time. It is a daunting goal that many might have thought impossible. Martin House and its supporters are working hard to change people’s minds.
   The Rev. Brian McCormick, founder and president of Martin House, has been changing people’s minds for over 30 years – including his own. Father McCormick was honored this month on the statewide level as a recipient of the Governor’s Volunteer Award for Long-Term Service during the 2003 New Jersey Conference on Volunteerism.
   Following the riots of the late 1960s that battered inner cities already ravaged by poverty and racism, Father McCormick, a Roman Catholic priest, was asked by his bishop to go to Trenton. He declined. But when no one else responded to the bishop’s call, he turned to prayer and reflection.
   "I thought if Jesus is alive, then his resurrection must be demonstrated in the places where there is the least hope," Father McCormick said.
   He moved to the Wilbur section of Trenton in 1970 and quickly discovered the difficulties of gaining a foothold in a community with overwhelming problems and a transient population.
   "I saw very early in my work that there was an urgent need to stabilize the population," Father McCormick said. "If I was going to help create a sense of community, I had to start with housing – housing the poor could afford."
   That focus, said Father McCormick, helped him to discover his role as a bridge-builder between the real needs of the poor and real solutions. It is a focus that has helped him create a network of support over 30 years that – through education, renovation and construction – has provided 169 homes to the poorest of Trenton.
   "I can’t handle all the problems here," Father McCormick said. "They’re too overwhelming. But, I found that if you focus on the delivery system and service, you begin to find people to assist you."
   Bearing a compelling message that combines the call for compassion with the hope of "the American Dream," Father McCormick has found numerous people to assist him in Martin House’s current campaign to raise $2.1 million to build 100 homes for 100 families in the next five years – notably some Princeton residents.
   Joyce Albers-Schonberg of Princeton first encountered Father McCormick at the Aquinas Institute, the Diocese of Trenton’s campus outreach program, when he spoke at a Sunday Mass. Impressed with his message, she discussed the possibility of contributing. She and her husband, George, decided to give $21,000 – a sum used to leverage the additional $42,000 in matching grants needed to build a single home.
   "Homeownership is part of ‘the American Dream,’" said Ms. Albers-Schonberg. "My grandparents came to this country with nothing. My grandfather built their home with his own hands and with the help of neighbors. If we could make it possible for someone to own a home that otherwise would not be able to afford it, it would be a great thing."
   Like Ms. Albers-Schonberg’s grandfather, Martin House recipients must help to build their own homes – and the homes of their neighbors.
   In a unique aspect of the program called "sweat equity," prospective homeowners are trained in basic building skills and required to work a minimum of 150 hours in the construction of houses. They must also attend bimonthly meetings for mutual support and community-building. In exchange, they are given an 11-year, no-interest mortgage of $21,000.
   John Slapp of Princeton, the current chair of the board of trustees for Martin House, says that "sweat equity" was one of the important pieces that attracted him to the program.
   "I felt like I was making an investment and not just a contribution," Mr. Slapp said.
   John and his wife, Michele, also provided seed money for a new home and were invited to the annual block party that celebrates the growing community. Donors are invited to take a tour of the new houses and John was struck by a simple gesture.
   "In every home we toured, the new owners had carefully put down floor runners to protect their new carpeting. It felt good to see that these people were taking ownership and pride in their new homes and protecting them," he said.
   Dr. Susan Mc Coy, former chair and current member of the board of trustees, has been a long-time supporter of Martin House. She hopes that recent recognition of the program will raise awareness of the housing needs of the working poor and elicit a broader response.
   "I hope that people begin to see the difference between low-income housing and housing that the poor can afford. The people that we serve could not afford low-income housing. You assume that it serves the poor, but that’s not always true," Dr. Mc Coy said.
   John Slapp is confident that Martin House homeowners will break the chain of poverty that has plagued most Wilbur section residents and leave a more valuable legacy to future generations.
   "This program helps these folks build equity and assets in their new home. That’s something that they can pass down to their children," he said.
   Dr. Mc Coy envisions a stable community where working people are able to live in decent homes and take care of their families.
   "Hopefully, we can raise a generation of kids that have hope and something to look forward to, so that they can achieve and lead successful lives," she said.
   Ms. Albers-Schonberg, who attended the groundbreaking ceremony, was gratified to see the impact of her contribution first hand.
   "When you drive through Trenton and come back to Princeton, you can see how privileged we are," she said. "Then you see what a difference your contribution can make in the lives of these people and their neighborhood. It just hit a chord in me that it was the right thing to do."
   The sponsors of the Grant Avenue project each donated $21,000. They are The Mary Owen Borden Foundation; The James Kerney Foundation; New Jersey Manufacturers Insurance Company; St. John’s Church of Allentown; St Vincent de Paul Church of Yardville, and Joyce and George Albers-Schonberg of Princeton.
   Additional Princeton contributors include Michele and John Slapp, who have a three-year commitment; Woodwinds Associates (San de Turo, president); Environmental Health Services; Dr. Susan Mc Coy and Professor Richard Miles; Dr. Ursula Nowak and Professor Martin Nowak, and The Aquinas Institute.
Martin House will host its ninth annual dinner dance on Saturday, May 10, at Merrill Lynch in Plainsboro to benefit "100 Homes for 100 Families." For individual tickets and corporate tables, call Martin House (609) 989-8143. On the Web: www.dioceseoftrenton.org/justicecaring/social/martinhouse.cfm