Habitat for Humanity builds homes, but this weekend they're also building faith by hosting an International Day of Prayer and Action.
Habitat for Humanity hopes the event, which takes place Sunday, Sept. 15, at 7 p.m. at the Provo Seventh-day Adventist Church, will inspire the community to take action and make a difference in the lives of others.
“We work with all of the interfaith groups because we are in this together. Things like freedom of religion and freedom of speech and freedom of assembly — all those things in the constitution are very important. If we didn’t have those, it’d be hard to do church,” said Provo Seventh-day Adventist Chaplin Linda Walton.
Habitat for Humanity organized this event 36 years ago to bring all faiths in the community together for an evening program of united prayer. This event will specifically focus on praying for those in need of shelter, including the 2,000 homeless individuals in Utah Valley, Walton said.
According to a Habitat for Humanity press release, the program will include scripture readings and prayers from the Utah Valley Interfaith Association, a musical performance by Joshua Lindsay and remarks from Stephen W. Owen, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' Young Men General President.
This event differs from previous years as it will feature the announcement of a new faith-building program called Faith Builders, partners to Utah Valley’s Habitat for Humanity.
Nancy Mickiewicz, the donor relations and development manager for the Utah Valley Habitat for Humanity, expressed her excitement and enthusiasm for this new faith-building group, and said they could have a powerful impact on the lives of individuals.
She said one of the homeowners who benefitted from their work told her, 'Your program restored my faith in humanity. I was ready to give up my kids to my ex and just give up.'
Mickiewicz said, 'She was just crying when she told me she is just extremely grateful and so blessed. She said that her children have a better life. We changed generations for their family, and their children are now in college ... and excelling. They have opportunities they would not have had and it was all because we gave a hand up, not a handout.'