Fixing problems

MOSES LAKE — Habitat for Humanity is known for building new homes, but last year the Moses Lake chapter focused instead on repairing existing ones. It was so successful, they’re doing it again this year.

“We’re still on the fence on whether or not we’re going to build,” said Habitat for Humanity of Greater Moses Lake Executive Director Rebecca Mabius. “We want to build, because building homes is one of our main missions. But the home repair program allows for individuals to stay in their home. We’re able to help more families than just a single family.”

In 2025, HFHGML decided to concentrate its resources on the Brush with Kindness program, making home repairs and safety upgrades for folks who otherwise couldn’t afford it.

“We did 10 homes in the community and spent $75,000,” Mabius said.

An 11th project was started but not finished, and it will carry over to this year, she added.

“We just finished a bathroom project,” Mabius said. “We went in and redid their shower and their bathroom for (a disabled individual). It can be as simple as handrails (and) sidewalks to as complex as doing bathrooms, doing roofs.”

Roof repairs and plumbing were a large part of the 2025 Brush with Kindness program, Mabius said. The work was done for working families and seniors on a fixed income.

“Our bathroom renovations have ranged anywhere from $7,000 to $15,000,” she said. “If you’re a homeowner on a fixed income … (and) you get a bill that’s, $10,000-$15,000, you’re going. ‘Where am I going to find these dollars? Or how am I going to be able to do this repair when my income is maybe $1,400-$1,800 a month?’”

One of those people was Cheryl Lalkus, who found herself faced with a plumbing emergency that she didn’t have any way of correcting.

“They replaced a pipe for me that went from the water meter on the street to the main underneath my house,” Lalkus said. “There was a major leak and I had a small swamp going on in my front yard.”

She began getting notices from the city that she was using too much water, she said. But the repairs were going to cost $6,500, which Lalkus simply didn’t have.

“I went to the bank to try to get a loan to cover that, because I was in a panic, and I got denied,” she said.  “So when I applied at Habitat and got approved, it was a big relief.”

Habitat for Humanity had Lalkus get three estimates, and the best was ABS Plumbing, she said. ABS sent two men out to her home and dealt with the problem quickly.

“When they filled in the hole, you couldn’t even tell,” Lalkus said. “They’d had to dig down, like, three or four feet and a couple of feet wide. You couldn’t even tell it when they got done.”

The money isn’t simply a donation, Mabius explained. The homeowner repays 20%-30% of the cost back to the organization. Habitat works with the homeowner to set up a payment plan they can keep up with.

“That allows us to continue to do the projects in our community, but also to give people a hand up, to let them live within their home,” Mabius said.

Habitat is accepting applications for this year’s Brush with Kindness. There are some requirements: The applicant has to own the home, they must carry insurance and they have to be within the 98837 ZIP code. Projects can cost up to $120,000, Mabius said.

“Seniors, veterans, individuals with disabilities, low-income families can apply to this program if they have a needed home repair,” she said.

About half of the money for last year’s Brush with Kindness came from donations from Washington Trust Bank and Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines, Mabius said. The rest came from private donors and money raised through Habitat’s annual Festival of Trees auction. That fundraiser brought in about $80,000 for the coming year, she said.

Most of the repairs through Brush with Kindness require skilled professionals, but Mabius said Habitat will have opportunities for anyone who’s willing to volunteer.

“In the spring, we’re really trying to push helping seniors with yard cleanup days,” she said. “If you want to help a neighbor or help some seniors picking up their lawn spring and fall, we’re trying to get those kind of initiatives pushed.”

For more information or to apply for assistance, visit habitatgreatermoseslake.org.

    Workers from ABS Plumbing repair a water main for Cheryl Lalkus of Moses Lake. The work would have cost her $6,500 that she didn’t have, Lalkus said, but Habitat for Humanity was able to help her cover it.
  

  

    Robin Moore looks over a decorated Christmas tree at Habitat for Humanity of Greater Moses Lake’s Festival of Trees in December. The event raised about $80,000 that will go toward home repairs in 2026.