SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – The Greater Springfield Habitat for Humanity just received a charitable grant from the KeyBank Foundation during the bank’s ‘Volunteer Build Day.’
The donation assists Habitat’s green building practice programs, which strive to build homes utilizing a variety of environmentally friendly. Green building practices have a positive impact on the environment while providing homeowners with energy-efficient homes.
Every year Key Bank likes to close all of their branches and help the communities they serve, and On Thursday they helped the Greater Springfield Habitat for Humanity construct a home that will house a single mother and her four children in Holyoke.
“Today we are here to show that we not only like to give grants, we like to be in our community and help and it’s just amazing to be here today and actually be apart and get our hands dirty and actually do the work and be part of it,” said Branch Manager, Ramon Albizu.
The KeyBank Foundation donated over $39,000 to Habitat. This grant will go directly towards building environmentally friendly and cost-efficient homes for families in need
Executive Director of Greater Springfield Habitat for Humanity, Aimee Giroux, tells 22News, “We recently started an environmental stewardship initiative and Key Bank has been our first contributor to that with a significant donation to kick that off. The home here in Holyoke is the first ICF-built house that we’ve done. So we’re hoping to take some of the things from here onto our next projects starting in Springfield.”
These green building practices have a positive impact on the environment and provide homeowners with energy-efficient homes to save on other costs. “The homeowners when they come in, they are going to be able to take those benefits, having lower utility bills and things like that, will help them become successful homeowners,” Giroux adds. “If they are able to maintain their home, it’s also a better and cleaner environment for the family that moves in, if we’re using things that help remove things like carbon dioxide and stuff like that from the home.”
Habitat’s green practices include switching away from standard pink insulation and bringing in things like hemp wool or wood-based insulation which helps create a better environment for the family living in the home.
Melissa Torres is a reporter who has been a part of the 22News team since 2021. Follow Melissa on X @melissatorrestv and view her bio to see more of her work.
