Ben SchamissoThe people working to fix up this house in a Chicago suburb are not professionals.
Their free labor is an act of charity. They call it a labor of love.
The house they're restoring is their church's residence.
A pastor used to live here.
Soon it will be a safe haven for Afghan refugees.
Kathryn Mueller and Hilda Carey, two members of the small Mennonite congregation, are the project's leaders.
The house has been empty since May 2020. When the fall of Afghanistan hit the front pages, they knew exactly what to do.
One lucky family will call this home. But tens of thousands of other Afghan refugees will also need a place to stay very soon — a challenge at any time, but especially so right now during a nationwide shortage of affordable housing.
