Be a light to the world

Jesus’ words are practical and concise, and their truth rings out clearly, even centuries later. He was truly a master wordsmith. In his references to the ten commandments his message was that the spirit of the law is broader than the letter of the law and that includes our thought towards others. When asked which was the greatest commandment he said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and all your mind.” “This is the first and greatest commandment.” “The second is like it, Love your neighbor as thy self.”

That is a tall order, but for the sake of conversation and looking at the political climate of today; if I have 12 neighbors it is very likely that close to half will not think like I do. Coming from where I come from the count will be even worse. Coming together and doing things we can agree on may be our saving grace today. Loving our neighbors, next door and on our streets is crucial.

HPLA is a charity dedicated to helping low-income homeowners with minor home repairs. Let that sink in a minute and ask the obvious question, why low-income homeowners? Answer: because you have to start somewhere, and you have to do something. Over the course of eight plus years in business one of the biggest tragedies I have found is folks having repair problems without any means or resources to fix them. There are hundreds of ideas to remedy that problem. What is yours? I had one idea and acted on it. You can act on yours, if you want. If you want to be a light in the world. Start with contributing to an idea for good. I founded HPLA. In doing Handyman work I found that fixing one toilet would save the cost of filling a hotel swimming pool with fresh water in a week. (Standard motel/hotel pool is 30,000 gallons approximately but varies). So, we started fixing leaky toilets for free because folks could not afford a plumber. That led to faucets, indoor and out, which led to bathroom remodels due to the damage of leaks etc. After replacing floors and walls and entire water systems (we just recently replaced a hot water heater) it was important we do more. Taking care of those expenses does not catch up the waste and the cost of the waste of water month after month. Soooo, HPLA started helping with water bills. (FYI-the water companies have little sympathy for you wasting water due to your systems failure.) Helping our neighbors has caused us to rewrite our mission statement and increase what we are able to do to help. We have done this with a half dozen faithful donors who send money every month and with those who have given large & small one-time donations. Our volunteers are unbelievable people. Out of every dollar donated HPLA takes nothing. All donations go to help our clients and as necessary to licensed professionals who work at a discount for us, but not for free. Oh, yes, we have had a special contractor or two help us at no charge. Roofers, plumbers, HVAC and electricians. But all our work is now to help our neighbors and not for profit. We have paid out over two thousand dollars for utility bills alone.

HPLA Charities has recently received an award from PayPal’s newly established “Giving Fund” with was used immediately to repair wood rot for an invalid man whose wife was working almost day and night to care for him. (Homes must be kept in good repair, or the county will ticket you as a homeowner and give so many days to clear the citation.) Their shed was in shambles as was wood rot and paint on the home. HPLA was able to pick up the material cost for this job & a man ‘Jorge’ with his son did the repairs over the course of a couple of weeks. In a second project HPLA bought the hot water heater and it was replaced by Pegasus Construction at no cost. WOW! That link to the PayPal “Giving Fund” site can be found on our donation page on our web site. https://habitacionesparalatinos.org/donate/

HPLA Charities aka Habitaciones Para Latinos Assocation is working on two fronts and including all cultures. Now in Wichita, Ks and in Kansas City, Kansas where it originated. We will do all we can to be a light to the community as our county, state and country try’s to be a light to the world. We must keep our non-profit organizations, like HPLA, strong as they are working hard to bring our country together by insuring no one loses their home or their dignity. Hopefully it will fix our division with each other. Please give. God Bless