GREENFIELD — Hannah Heineman and her son, Gabriel, will soon have a house to call their own in the neighborhood where they have lived for the past eight years.
The Heinemans won a lottery system through Franklin Hampshire Habitat for Humanity, formerly Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity, and the Aug. 6, 2025, kickoff celebration at the construction site came full circle last week, when neighbors and city officials convened at 5 Birch St. to extend their well wishes.
“I’m feeling really excited,” Heineman said. “It’s been a year of hard work, and it’s just a culmination of a lot of people’s contributions, and it just feels a little surreal.”
She said she is finishing the mortgage application now and she anticipates having a new roof over her head by mid-June.
“We are excited to celebrate with Hannah and her son Gabe the first home to be completed under our new banner, Franklin Hampshire Habitat for Humanity,” Megan McDonough, the affiliate’s executive director, said in a statement. “And it’s particularly meaningful that Hannah was able to build this home literally in her own backyard, that she and Gabe will be able to continue to build memories in the neighborhood that has meant so much to them during everything that led them to this moment.”
Mariah Kurtz, president of the Franklin Hampshire Habitat board of directors, started the ceremony with a land acknowledgement, a formal statement that recognizes Native American tribes as the original stewards of a specific geographic area. She also mentioned this build, a previously vacant lot, is the 59th home completed by Habitat for Humanity in Franklin and Hampshire counties.
Hannah Heineman and her son, Gabriel, now have an affordable house thanks to Franklin Hampshire Habitat for Humanity. Credit: DOMENIC POLI / Staff Photo
“As always, a deep well of gratitude to all the volunteers: the regulars [who were] out building in all weather, our thoughtful leaders on the project leadership team and all those working behind the scenes,” she said, “like the family mentors, family support, hospitality and landscape committees, and many other volunteers.”
Mayor Ginny Desorgher also spoke, saying the Birch Street home is a beautiful testament to what happens when the Greenfield area community steps up.
“Building a home takes a village, and I want to extend my deepest gratitude to the Greenfield and Northampton Cooperative Bank, the Greenfield Community Preservation Committee, and the many individuals and foundations who helped make this project possible,” she said. “Thanks also to PV Squared and an anonymous local solar ‘angel’ who generously stepped in to outfit this home with a solar array.”
Dorothy Cresswell performed a rendition of “If I Had a Hammer,” the 1949 protest song written by Pete Seeger and Lee Hays, before a final blessing by Nipponzan-Myōhōji Buddhist monks of the New England Peace Pagoda in Leverett.
Building a Habitat for Humanity house relies on volunteer labor, including from the future homeowner. Heineman had to contribute 250 hours to the build, which she did on weekends.
