Partnerships Fuel Central Oklahoma Habitat’s Growth with Lasting Impact

From building the infrastructure for our developments to presenting families with a bible at our home dedications, we are grateful for our many long-term partnerships with businesses that are passionate about our cause and care deeply about strengthening our community.

While partnerships come in all shapes and sizes, they are symbiotically created and sustained through our shared values and common goals. It, of course, also helps when a company works in the same industry. Take B&H Construction, for example. They have provided us with materials and labor to geo-drill wells for over a decade.

B&H has dramatically impacted our organization over the years, from drilling 90 wells at our newest Central Oklahoma Habitat ReStore location to donating the labor to drill approximately 700 geothermal wells and counting in new Habitat homes. Most recently, B&H committed to also helping with our new development, Cornerstone Creek.

Two other energy-related partnerships were formed years ago, thanks to former ClimateMaster president and Comfortworks chairman Dan Ellis. In 2006, Dan recognized that geothermal heating and cooling systems could work with our affordable housing business model. ClimateMaster has provided new Habitat homes with geothermal units ever since. Comfortworks handles our system design, installation, testing, and startup services for the units at cost.

The sum of these three partnerships brings an estimated $700-$800 in energy savings for our families each year. They have also helped COHFH to become one of the most energy-efficient builders in the state and among the top Habitat affiliates in the nation.

Malarkey Roofing Products has donated class 4 hail-resistant shingles for our homes since 2011. The shingles give Habitat families a 29-30% discount on their home insurance. In February 2023, Malarkey will reach a new milestone with COHFH, having shipped shingles to roof 400 homes. That nears roughly 10,800 “squares” of shingles (a roofing term used to describe 100 square feet of roofing area) or approximately 712,000+ shingles over the last 12 years.

Scott Curry, a sales representative for Malarkey, says the company values the partnership in many ways. “Our employees find great satisfaction in knowing their efforts help put roofs over the heads of fellow Oklahomans who otherwise may not have had the opportunity of homeownership,” said Curry. He said the company’s favorite part is attending the home dedications. “We see the joy in our new friend’s eyes as they receive the keys to their new house. It’s awesome seeing dreams come true for so many deserving families.”

“What we’ve found is that once a business gets involved with our organization, whether they send volunteers to a construction site, make an in-kind donation, or see their corporate dollars at work, they become invested in our cause,” said Ann Felton Gilliland, CEO and Chairman of Central Oklahoma Habitat. “That’s the kind of support you want. People who truly care.”

Maxwell Supply is a company that sells construction materials, tools, and equipment to the trade and is another valued corporate partner of ours. In 2009, Maxwell Supply fully funded its first full home sponsorship and celebrated its fifth full home sponsorship at during its 60th anniversary in 2018. Looking ahead, the company has already committed to sponsoring our first home in Cornerstone Creek.

Maxwell Supply Chairman Charlie Thomason tells us that every time Maxwell Supply can participate in a home dedication, it is equally as rewarding as the last. “Maxwell is proud to partner with an organization that enriches families’ lives through homeownership and strengthens our community at large.”

Whirlpool donates most of the kitchen appliances installed in Habitat houses. Currently, this includes cooktops, microwaves, and dishwashers. Habitat International established a partnership with Whirlpool 25 years ago, and all Habitat affiliates (about 1,100) enjoy the contribution. We do not have Whirlpool representatives at our home dedications, but we always make a point to thank them.

COHFH also shares several smaller, meaningful partnerships that focus on making Habitat families feel welcome in their new homes. All Souls Episcopal Church has given bibles to new homeowners for many years. A group within the church called Daughters of the King leads the effort to ensure a member attends each house dedication and presents the family with a bible. The family is always told that the gift has a lifetime warranty should it ever need to be replaced.

Daughters of the King member Suzanne Spradling tells us she loves meeting the families and seeing their genuine appreciation for their new home and all they have received. “This is such a heartfelt outreach,” said Spradling. “It is a joy to be a part of it and to get to know folks you would otherwise not get to meet.”

For 20 years, the Edmond Board of REALTORS® has been involved with COHFH. The association brings REALTORS® to volunteer on a yearly home build and sends a REALTOR® to every home dedication, where they give the new homeowner a welcome doormat. We adore this tradition and its impact on our families as they start their next chapter in their new homes.

“As REALTORS®, we know the value of homeownership,” said Sue Rosa, Edmond Board of REALTORS®. “We consider it a privilege to participate in this worthy organization that provides affordable housing to deserving Oklahomans.”

Supermercados Morelos joined our home dedication welcoming committee four years ago. The store provides each family with two sacks of groceries to fill their pantry and a $100 gift certificate. To top it off, we give each family a $50 gift certificate to our Central Oklahoma Habitat ReStores.

“All of our partnerships are remarkable in their own way,” Gilliland said. “Every one of our partners is invested in helping to strengthen families and the economic health of our community at large. I am proud and thankful to be part of an organization with such tremendous support.”

Partnerships are more important than ever as COHFH prepares to break ground on its largest development to date, Cornerstone Creek. To learn more about how your organization or business can help, visit cohfh.org or call 405.232.4828.