Teanna Zillmer, Habitat for Humanity Lakeside's newest homeowner, delivered these remarks at the dedication of her home on May 28, 2025. 

Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you so much for being here. It truly means a lot to look around and see so many familiar faces, along with some new ones here to share in this special moment. I’ll be the first to admit that public speaking isn’t exactly in my comfort zone, but this is one of those rare times I’ve genuinely looked forward to standing up and saying a few words.

I’m lucky to be joined today by my two favorite little humans: my son Byron, who’s 7 and full of big heart and endless energy, and my daughter Mazikeen, who’s 1 and currently living her best life excited to have new cabinets to slam shut. They keep me grounded, make me laugh, and remind me every day why I applied for this home in the first place.

Standing here today is incredibly emotional — not just because of what this house means, but because of what this journey has taught me, and trust me when I say it’s about more than just drywall and paint samples.

When I first applied for this home, I was pregnant with my daughter, raising my son alone and moving back into my parents’ house. There was a lot of love in that home…and also a lot of bumping into each other, stepping over toys, and trying to find quiet corners that just didn’t exist. Let’s just say privacy was a luxury — and babyproofing someone else’s kitchen is as tricky as it sounds.

I was overwhelmed. I didn’t know how I was going to give my kids the life they deserved. But I had hope — and I took a leap of faith, applying to Habitat not knowing exactly what would come of it, but praying something good would.

What I didn’t expect was that along the way, I’d find something even greater than a home. I found my faith.

I wasn’t raised in a religious household. But through Habitat, through the people I met, the kindness I received, and the strength I saw in others, I found something I didn’t know I was missing. I found God. And I truly believe He brought us here, not just to this home, but to this community, to this purpose.

Now, my 7-year-old son finally has a room to call his own — he’s already plotting where to put secret passageways — and my daughter, now one, will be taking her first steps in our very own hallway. I get to baby-proof a space that’s actually mine. I mean, that’s living the dream, right?

To the volunteers, donors, and the entire Habitat team: You didn’t just build a house. You built a foundation for our future. Every nail you hammered, every hour you gave, was a step toward stability, joy, and yes, grace. You helped me give my children a safe place to grow and a mother who’s grown, too.

Photo: Whitney Morales Photography

Habitat for Humanity Lakeside’s 52nd home is complete and ready for its new family. We’re proud of this accomplishment and proud of our new strategic plan, which will ramp up home building to five a year.
 
How, you might wonder, is it possible for Habitat for Humanity Lakeside to build one simple, decent, and affordable new home a year, let alone five?

Two major ingredients: One is our financing model. The other is the overwhelming support we get from businesses, organizations, and individuals.
 
Let’s start with the financing model. Habitat homes aren’t free. The three criteria for prospective home buyers are need, their ability to pay, and their willingness to partner. Approved homebuyers must contribute 250 hours of sweat equity toward building the home and receive financial education. Once the home is built, they receive an interest-free mortgage based on 23 percent of their adjusted gross income.
 
The second ingredient: Overwhelming support of our mission from Sheboygan-area residents, organizations, and businesses. Donated lumber, flooring, appliances, plumbing supplies, paint, drywall, and other house-building necessities. Thousands of labor hours donated by skilled electricians and plumbers as well as people who love to build things.
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Nothing we do is possible without this generosity. Everyone's commitment to our work enables us to give people a hand up, not a handout, as we like to say.
 
Next week, we’ll turn this space over to the family scheduled to be the newest Habitat for Humanity Lakeside partner family. Right now, we thank the kind and compassionate people and companies for their contributions to our newest home.
 
Richard and Kristin Bemis and their family for their generous financial and in-kind sponsorship of the home, given in loving memory of Austen Bemis.
 
Kohler Company, Poly Vinyl, Color Guard Railing Systems, Whirlpool, Levolor, Pella, Sherwin-Willams, Steven Tenpas Drywall, Schneider Electric, Heim Plumbing, Drexel Building Supply, JF Lopez Roofing, Baumann Excavating, Amerhart, IBEW Local 2150, Wisconsin State Sheet Metal Workers Local 18, and IBEW Local 494, for in-kind donations of building equipment and skilled volunteer time.
 
Altrusa International for the home’s bookcase and books.
 
Meijer for the dedication celebration’s refreshments.
 
The individuals, church groups, and corporate teams who volunteered their time and talents to build this home.
 
Thank you. We’re breaking ground on our 53rd home later this year and we can’t wait to see you again.

Habitat for Humanity Lakeside has a new and limited-time-only program designed to help Sheboygan County veterans keep their homes safe and in good repair.

We'll help make a variety of critical repairs, including replacing/repairing steps, decks, railings, ramps, exterior doors, windows, siding/sheathing, trim, fascia, gutter boards, downspouts; paint; weatherization and insulation; replacing or repairing interior doors, ceilings, walls, and floors/flooring; and making accessibility modifications such as installing ramps and grab bars. The repairs are completed by trained Habitat staff and volunteers.
 
You may qualify the program if you can answer yes to the following questions:

1. Are you a veteran with a general or honorable discharge, any year, from any branch of service?
2. Do you own and occupy a single-family home in Sheboygan County?
3. Are your house payments and property taxes up to date?
4. Do you have a homeowners insurance policy in effect?
5. Is your home in need of critical repairs?
6. Does your income fall within these guidelines?

​To learn more about this program, please contact Penny Rayfield, Habitat Lakeside family services manager, at 920.458.3399 ext. 307 or by email: [email protected]. Applications must be filed by August 15, 2025. 
 
Habitat reserves the right to determine which building projects can be done by our staff or volunteers. Habitat will evaluate the house to assess the scope of work and cost of repairs.
 
Habitat for Humanity Lakeside is part of a global nonprofit housing organization working in local communities across all 50 United States and in approximately 70 countries to build homes, communities, and hope. The main goal is to eliminate substandard housing through constructing, rehabilitating, and preserving homes; by advocating for fair and just housing policies; and by providing training and access to resources to help families improve their housing conditions.

At any given time, Habitat for Humanity Lakeside has about 50 volunteers helping with most facets of our mission, from building houses to office work to pricing items at the ReStore.

Join us, won’t you? Enthusiastic, generous people are key to our mission.

Please head to our website and fill out the volunteer form. When you’re finished, hang tight: We’ll get to you very quickly. Most volunteers can be working the very next day. In the meantime, here’s what you need to know about volunteering with Habitat for Humanity Lakeside:
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1. All skill sets and levels are welcome. We’ll train you.
2. We’ll provide tools and safety equipment.
3. We’re flexible with scheduling, mostly. We do ask that home-building volunteers spend at least four hours on sites because it usually takes that much time to complete a building-site project.
4. We do a background check on volunteers. Don’t take it personally, please. Habitat for Humanity Lakeside volunteers work with the public.
5. Looking for community-service volunteer hours? Apply, please. Thank you.
6. Age matters! If you’re 14 to 17 years old, you’ll need a parent with you to volunteer at ReStore. You’ll need a parent on a building site with you if you’re 16 or 17. Eighteen or older? You can volunteer on your own.
7. Expect a distinct experience every time you volunteer. ReStore volunteers, for instance, price items, clean them, repair them, and set them on the sales floor. It’s never boring.
8. Expect to feel productive. At Habitat for Humanity Lakeside, you enjoy the fruits of your labor at the end of your volunteer shift, whether it’s fresh shingles on a roof or a fetching display at the ReStore.
9. Expect to have fun. Few experiences match the camaraderie of a Habitat for Humanity home-building site, which brings people together to build homes, community, and hope.
10.  Expect to feel welcomed and appreciated.
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You’re in good hands when you volunteer at Habitat Lakeside. We want you to have fun and feel useful. And our volunteer coordinators know just how to do that. 

By Jon Hoffman, Habitat for Humanity Lakeside construction manager

Habitat for Humanity homes aren’t free. Our partner families pay a mortgage that’s tailored to their finances. Just as importantly, each adult who will live in the home invests 250 hours of sweat equity into the building of the house that will become their home.

Sweat equity, in case you are not familiar with the term, is the labor hours people invest in any project. During my 11 years at Habitat for Humanity Lakeside, I’ve seen sweat equity take many forms. One soon-to-be homeowner kept volunteers fed as they worked on his house. That same person also became good at pouring concrete. He helped finish his driveway and has since volunteered on concrete projects on other Habitat building sites. Other homeowners have hammered shingles on roofs, painted interiors and exteriors, and assisted trained volunteers with electric and plumbing projects. Yet another continues her sweat equity commitment by serving on a Habitat for Humanity Lakeside committee.

Sweat equity helps build houses. It also builds the homeowner’s relationship with the house and sets the stage for homeownership.

How so?

First, sweat equity bonds homeowners with their new homes. When they’re part of the process of building a house, they stake a claim to it and develop a relationship with it, as well as an understanding of how they will function and thrive in their new environment. Think about how you bond with something that you nurture from infancy to its full realization. A child. Or a vegetable garden.

Second, Habitat for Humanity’s homeowners are first-time homeowners. Sweat equity helps them think of themselves as homeowners, not renters. When you’re renting, you accept what’s there and make the most of it. When you and a community of people are building your home, details matter. That nick in the closet door? Good enough for a rental, not good enough for a house. As the house evolves from a hole in the ground to a comfortable and safe space for a family, a family that’s investing sweat equity into the house develops pride of ownership.
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A home, for most people, is the biggest investment they will make. Habitat for Humanity Lakeside partner families have traveled a long road to be able to make this investment. Sweat equity helps make sure that the investment is a sound one.

By Heather Russell, Habitat for Humanity Lakeside Partner Family member
 
Back in 2016, my young sons, Michael and Noah, and I were renting an apartment in the lower half of a house. Our upstairs neighbors were smokers, and the smoke smell would fill the hallways and our house, which would give me a headache. I’m not sure what their situation was, but whatever it was, they got quite a few visits from the police.

At the time, I was working as a special education aide for the Plymouth School District. One of the Habitat for Humanity Lakeside board members was head of the department. She knew about our situation from the occupational therapist who helped Michael, who has a degenerative vision impairment. The therapist asked if I wanted to be considered for a Habitat home. I didn’t even know what that meant.

I found out soon enough as the application process started. I filled out the first application. The next step was credit counseling. Then there was an in-home visit. Then there was a review by the Habitat board. I did it all without my sons’ knowing because I didn’t want to get their hopes up.

I found out we got the house on May 26, 2016, the same day Michael’s school surprised him with a field trip to New York to visit the Statue of Liberty, which was something he wanted to see while his vision was still good enough. I get choked up just thinking about it and this amazing community.

Groundbreaking was in the fall of 2016. My church was really involved and made meals for the workers. I did my sweat equity working at the Habitat booth at Plymouth’s Mill Street Festival. I also did drywall and siding and helped set up the trusses for the garage roof.

We moved into the house in 2017. Michael said the layout of the house was easy to maneuver. He and Noah had their own rooms, so they had more privacy and more space. I felt safer in the neighborhood, safe enough to leave them alone for a few nights so I could go back to school and earn a degree in cosmetology. I was able to make a career change and have been at my current salon for three years.

My family is more stable now. I don’t have to worry about finding a new affordable rental every three or four years as Michael and Noah grow up. We’ve been able to become part of this neighborhood and get to know our amazing neighbors. I feel more secure financially because my housing money is building equity in the house, not going to some landlord.  
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Has the experience been life-changing? Yes. As Noah says: “This house has affected my life greatly! I have my own spot to go to and it’s a very stable place to go to without having to move so often. We have been here for eight years now in July, and I am very lucky and happy to call it my home.”

By Dennis Ketterman, Habitat for Humanity Lakeside volunteer

​On July 8, I’ll start my 22nd bike ride to raise money for Habitat for Humanity Lakeside. Over the years I’ve raised somewhere between $80,000 and $90,000 for the organization. It’s been quite a journey, literally and figuratively.

The first 19 rides were for Habitat 500, a 500-mile race sponsored by Habitat for Humanity Minnesota. I got involved when Richard Manny, a friend who had completed many rides, asked my wife to ask me to do the ride. Richard knew I was exercising but not riding my bike 500 miles a year, let alone in one week. Plus, Richard knew that if my wife asked me to participate, I could not turn her down.

After my first year, I was hooked. It was very surprising and satisfying to be able to ride that far in a week. Richard had promised that I’d have a chance to meet new friends, and he was right. I met good people and looked forward to seeing them every year. We had such a fun time pulling each other in the peloton (the row of riders) and telling stories of our lives and just having great conversations. At the end of each ride day, we were off to the local pubs for food and beverages. It was also great because with more than 125 riders, you could always find those who rode at the speed you did.

This is what has kept me coming back year after year. This year will be my third year participating in Bike. Build. Home 500, a 500-kilometer ride launched by interested riders in 2023 after Habitat for Humanity Minnesota decided to sponsor a different fundraising adventure.

All the remarkable things about the Habitat 500 are also true with the BBH 500 — the camaraderie, fun rides, new and old friends, and the chance to raise money for Habitat for Humanity Lakeside and Habitat for Humanity St. Cloud, Minnesota, which is sponsoring this year’s event. I have always relied on a small group of friends and relatives for sponsorship. You can find more info on riding on the BBH 500 website. I strongly encourage you to take part in this wonderful event. You’ll be happy you did.
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If you would like to support Dennis in this year's Bike.Build.Home 500, please send a check payable to Habitat for Humanity Lakeside, with “Dennis” in the memo line, to the office: 1911 N. 8th St., Sheboygan, WI, 53081. Thank you!

The term “generational wealth” might conjure images of rich folk lounging on yachts, hopping and skipping among homes in exotic locations, or sporting fancy watches and handbags.

It can, indeed, be that.

But at its core, generational wealth is simple: It’s assets that a family can pass from one generation to the next. For many Americans, generational wealth is a home. That is why a home of one’s own is the foundation of financial stability. And that is why affordable housing is the trampoline that can spring families into financial security.

As simple a concept as it is, generational wealth is far from a reality for many people. For instance, the average Black family holds 24 cents in wealth — that is, savings, retirement accounts, real estate holdings, etc. — for every $1 held by white families, according to a 2023 wealth inequality report from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

There are ways to correct this inequality for all Americans. Here are three ideas.

Build affordable housing. At Habitat for Humanity, “affordable” means a mortgage that is no more than 30 percent of a family’s adjusted gross income. This means the family can afford to buy the house and afford to live in it – that is, keep up with repairs, maintenance, homeowner’s insurance, and other expenses.

Establish equal access to affordable education. This means placing value on degrees from two-year colleges, promoting the trades as a great way to earn a good living, and setting aside the notion that only a four-year college degree is worth anything in the job marketplace.

Update the credit reporting system. Paying rent and utility bills on time should count toward a person’s credit score; right now, they mostly do not. This old-fashioned system unfairly hobbles people who are working hard to establish a financial foundation for their families.

Generational wealth doesn’t have to be a Rolex on the wrist or a “White Lotus” vacation or a place in the Bahamas. All it needs to be is a home for a family to call home, from generation to generation. Supporting affordable housing in the community is a solid place to start.

Earth Day was launched in 1970 by Gaylord Nelson, U.S. senator from Wisconsin. The first Earth Day drew an estimated 20 million people in gatherings across the country; it’s since grown into a day that encourages people to protect the environment with three simple steps.

Reduce what you buy and consume. Reuse what you can. Recycle whenever possible.

We’ll add a fourth to the list: ReStore, as in Habitat for Humanity Lakeside’s ReStore. Donating to ReStore keeps items out of the landfill. Buying at ReStore enables shoppers to reuse and give new life to formerly loved objects. Buying at ReStore (all local shopping, in fact) can reduce the carbon footprint and packaging waste of online shopping.

ReStore is a fun place to shop. It’s filled with all sorts of furniture, from sofas and loveseats and dining-room sets to shelving, desks, occasional seating, side tables, lamps, and lighting fixtures. Need home improvement items? ReStore has tools, nuts, bolts, plumbing supplies, paint, and even an array of doors. If you’re in the market for a household-related item, odds are good the ReStore has it. If you need household inspiration, try ReStore.

Moving this spring, or downsizing, or otherwise offloading items you can’t use anymore? Call ReStore to donate! We take almost anything (a list on our website indicates what’s acceptable and what is not) that’s in good, usable condition. We’ll pick it up, too.

All ReStore sales support Habitat for Humanity Lakeside’s programs in Sheboygan. Building affordable homes for families and supporting them in their homebuying and homeownership journeys. Reasonably priced home repairs and, soon to come, aging-in-place adjustments (ramps, bathroom grab bars) to help Sheboygan County’s older adults stay in their homes as long as they can.

Here's what to expect when you visit ReStore: Lots to look at. A collection of vintage and contemporary furniture. Household items and decorative items galore. Kitchen cabinets. Bathroom sinks and vanities. Toilets and plumbing goods.

ReStore is open Wednesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Even if you’re not in the market for a good deal on a great item, stop by sometime. We’d love to see you. 

April is Fair Housing Month, commemorating passage of the Fair Housing Act of 1968, which forbids discrimination based on age, color, race, and other factors when renting, selling, or financing a house.
At Habitat for Humanity, April is Home is the Key month, a time to recognize the power of affordable housing to transform families and communities.

One event celebrates “housing,” and the other, ‘home.” So, we need to ask:  What’s the difference? Do you need a house to make a home? Are “house” and “home” the same thing? Does it even matter?

To start, “home” and “house” have become synonymous, but in a way they’re not, just as “body” and “soul” are not synonymous. A house is a physical object that contains a home, just like a body contains a soul. And it is possible to make a home without a house because home is, if you think about it, a state of mind. Home is sanctuary. It’s a place to prepare to interact with the world and to recover from those interactions, to celebrate life’s joys and mourn its sorrows. It’s a soft place to fall and to make memories with families and friends. It’s a place to make your own, with plants outside and personal touches inside. It where family is, regardless of the physical location.

The soul yearns for home, not house – just ask Dorothy where she wanted those ruby slippers to take her.

While “home” can be anywhere, there’s no denying the power of the physical structure called a house. To start, that structure provides stability and a fixed place for family to be together and to enjoy the comforts of that thing called home. A house provides a financial foundation for a family. A house can be the physical expression of a home, through gardening, decorative touches, and the collection of home-made pictures and photos on the refrigerator door.

Both “home” and “house” underpin successful families and communities. Here in Sheboygan, we need to offer the promise of “house” and “home” to more of our fellow citizens. In Sheboygan, the median household income of $62,000 falls far short of the $82,000 median income needed to buy a modest home in Wisconsin. In Wisconsin, one in eight families spends more than half its gross income on housing. That’s not sustainable and it’s not acceptable.
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Habitat for Humanity Lakeside plans to build more houses over the years, as detailed in our Strategic Plan posted on this website. Donations of money and items for our ReStore always help, but now our immediate need is for volunteers for the committees crucial to help fulfilling our strategic plan. Please, if you are skilled professional in the Sheboygan area, come and talk to us. There are few things more satisfying than watching an empty lot become a house occupied by a family who’s making that house a home. Come see for yourself.