Tiny Homes is spreading the Christmas spirit this year to veterans by donating clothes and toiletries. NHS and HOSA are donating to the ever-growing Tiny Home community that currently consists of 17 houses built by Kingwood Park, Summer Creek and Kingwood.
Architecture teacher Missi Taylor wanted to give back this season as her students build the program’s ninth tiny home.
“I just think it’s a good way to give back to the community and give back to the veterans who served for us, for our freedom – to allow us to be able to live the way we live,” Taylor said, “So if there’s anything we can do for them, I think we should.”
When Tiny Homes first started, Taylor never expected it to have such an impact on her students and the community. When she first started, she took her students to a symposium where they helped kids learn how to build tiny homes for the community and, most importantly, how to interact with homeless people.
“We actually got to talk with someone who was formerly homeless, and he just said that it’s so nice when someone actually makes eye contact with you and asks you how your day is going,” Taylor said. “You don’t have to give me any money, but it’s treating me like a human again.”
Taylor tries her best to give back in any way that she can and encourage her students to do the same. Seniors Sarah Du Preez and Austin Whittington couldn’t imagine what they would be doing without the program.
“Not only does it impact me, because it’s going to help me with college and stuff, it impacts everyone around me,” interior design captain Du Preez said. “It impacts the veterans, like, just these good things in the community.”
During a site visit to the current homes at Langetree Retreat and Eco Center in Liberty, Du Preez was able to ask the veterans what they would like to see in the new home and how she could incorporate new things for them to be the most comfortable.
Du Preez never expected architecture would be something she wanted to do but after her first class everything fell into place for her.
“I thought it was the automotive course but then I took my first class, I was like, ‘Oh my gosh. Architecture is what I want to do,’” Du Preez said. “Everything in my life connected together. This has always been what I wanted to do. How could I not see it?”
For construction manager Whittington, building was always something he enjoyed doing even from a young age. He knew that’s what we wanted to do. Being involved in this program helped him grow even more connected to it. Whittington had no idea how impactful it would turn out to be.
“It started with three students who had a dream of being able to build a house at school,” Whittington said. “Now it’s turned into a year-round thing where every year we get to build a new one.”
