Creative Compassion hosted a gingerbread house building party for Kids on the Rise a week before Christmas.
Creative Compassion provided pizza for their dinner and Christmas snacks and cookies for dessert.
Creative Compassion’s Deputy Director Mark Baldwin led the activity. After coworker Janie Burgess pointed out a trick to gingerbread house building using Pop-Tarts, Baldwin soon found himself making one to try it out and reported it worked out great.
Creative Compassion supplied everything needed to make the gingerbread houses, including gumdrops, candy canes, M&Ms, and other goodies to make for a festive gingerbread house.
This was also an opportunity for Baldwin to talk to the kids about the prospect of someday being a homeowner. He kept the talk on “kid” terms but several of the kids thought that owning a home someday sounded really cool.
Creative Compassion hopes to make this an annual event with Kids on the Rise.
Baldwin brought a model of Creative’s most recent homebuilds. Jeff Glancy Designs in Cookeville made the house and it makes for an interesting conversation piece when Creative sets up at events or when Baldwin does one of his talks to an interested group. It made for a good conversation piece with the kids, as well.
Baldwin said he has a heart for Kids on the Rise and their mission and has been a mentor in the program since May 2019.
The relationship between Creative Compassion and Kids on the Rise goes back many years. The two agencies at one point shared a building many years ago at Creative’s present location on Penny Lane.
Creative Compassion knows that many families in the Upper Cumberlands struggle to find affordable housing. Creative Compassion steps in by building homes specifically for low-income families.
As a result, these families can finally have a safe and stable place to call home.
Creative Compassion has built 188 houses since being founded by Mike Smathers in 1989. It also helps with unaffordable home repairs and utility bill assistance for those facing a financial emergency.
Creative Compassion also has a veterans assistance program that can help homeless veterans or veterans who need home repair assistance.
Visir ccihomes.org for more about Creative Compassion.