The ceremony was short, but the wait was long leading up to the Marvin family and Door County Habitat for Humanity breaking ground on the 43rd home build Tuesday afternoon in Baileys Harbor. After being selected as the partner family in December, it had to wait for affordable land to become available so Doug Marvin’s sons could still go to Gibraltar. Thanks to Dave and Carrie Link, Katy Andino, Jerry Lecy, and St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, that was made possible. Uncertainty surrounding COVID-19 delayed volunteers from being able to show up until early July, almost two months later than usual. Now that the ground is broken and the excavator is scheduled, Marvin is happy the wait is over.
It has come full circle for Marvin, who says he was the age of his son Emiliano when he helped build his childhood home. Build days will begin in July on Tuesdays and Thursdays, though construction supervisor Chuck Stone says they may have to recruit enough volunteers to work three days a week to get the home done before Christmas.