The patio, wherever it is, and join this beautiful day, sipping a nice cup of coffee or whatever
it is that you like to wake up to in the morning, I'm just glad that it's my voice today.
So good morning and welcome to Around the House.
My name is Scott Brokamp.
I am the founder and one of the owners of his security and technology.
And I have the great honor to, well, to get this show to continue on for hopefully many,
many more years to come.
So thank you for joining us this morning.
Right now we're going to have a little bit of an overcast day here this morning.
The sun's going to peak out a little bit later and should be a nice warm, yeah, you know,
74, 76 degrees today.
Should be enjoyable.
So get outside and well, just enjoy this beautiful day that Mother Nature has made.
If you need something to do, well, we can help you out with that.
The Market Square Farmers Market returns to its every Saturday spring and summer schedule.
This is the 20th season that the nonprofit group called Nourish Knoxville has organized
the farmers market.
So head downtown between 9 and 1 to meet area growers and artisans and support local businesses
in East Tennessee.
Speaking of local businesses, Stanley's Greenhouse is hosting a free workshop this morning.
Abby Stanley will be a guest on our show next weekend, but today she is teaching how
to design and plant the perfect spring container garden.
The seminar starts at 10 30 this morning at Stanley store on Davenport Road in South
Knoxville.
And our fourth ranked Lady Vols softball team near and dear to my heart.
We are playing our last home stand this weekend against South Carolina.
We did squeak out last night's game three to nothing.
First pitch today is at noon.
So come on down to Sherry Parker Lee.
And if you can get you a ticket, get in and enjoy a beautiful day at the ballpark.
That series will wrap up tomorrow and hopefully clinched the SEC title for more information
on all events happening around town today.
Go to visit Knoxville.com.
Let's visit Knoxville.com.
Our topic for the first hour of around the house is renewable energy and your power bill.
First August Congress passed new legislation that created tax incentives for businesses
and utility companies to invest in clean energy like solar power.
How soon will you see a reduction in your utility bill?
Is it worth the investment to convert your house to solar here to bust a few myths about
renewable energy are and Brock and John Hamilton from solar alliance.
Good morning.
John, how are you, sir?
Good morning.
Good to be here.
Thanks.
As you can tell, we have coined you the myth myth myth buster this morning.
I can't spit it out, but we'll get there.
Thanks for joining us this morning.
Yeah, I appreciate it.
And I'm not afraid of the myth buster challenge here.
We've got a very proud of what we do at solar alliance in general, but in in terms of what
we really do, most of its education and trying to make consumers more aware of what solar
can do and what it does for their home or what it does for their bill, etc.
So I think we're ready.
Yeah, absolutely.
Well, I mean, solar is such a hot topic and, you know, the advancements that we have seen
and with whether it be electric vehicles, whether it be solar wind, there are so many
groups and emphasis and focuses on renewable energy, which is, I mean, quite frankly, is
great, you know, it's, it's good for it's really, it's good for the future.
Good for our future.
It is good for the future.
I mean, we, we, there's a lot of misinformation.
There's a lot of, you know, ideas around solar that, you know, from Tinkerers and DIYers
from back in the day and, you know, Home Power magazine to what you see in the technology
space today.
And for most people, most of our clients, they obviously see protecting the environment
and clean energy as a positive.
Most of them though won't do it unless it actually makes sense financially.
Yeah.
So you got different drivers there for sure.
And, but it is exciting space to be in, especially these days.
So before we dive into DPR, John, just do me a favor.
Tell me a little bit about you and solar alliance in general.
And tell us, you know, about your time here in Knoxville and what can you share with us
about solar alliance as a business?
I'm a, I'm a return to Knoxville guy.
I mean, I graduated from Bearden high school back in the nineties and then went away, went
to college and then went into the Marine Corps.
And then after I retired in 2016, I came back to the Knoxville area.
I linked up with Harvey Abelado, who was at the time with, with Aries energy, you know,
long standing, I think probably over a decade plus of time and solar and renewable energy.
And that company Aries had at the time just been acquired by Thompson machinery out of
Nashville and was in the midst of building the first community solar project for Appalachian
Electric co-op right up near Granger County.
And was in the process of building that and in the process of kind of expanding a couple
years later, solar alliance then come, it came in and acquired this business.
But realistically, I joined the same company I worked for today.
It's just the name has changed a little bit as, as has the scope of what we do.
Initially, you know, when I first got here, it was a handful of projects, some really
nice high profile projects, but we were about 12 to 15 guys.
Now we're about 22 people strong and engaged in projects from, you know, Kentucky, North
Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and have done much more regional projects.
Most of our effort right now clearly is in Kentucky and Tennessee, but it's been exciting
to watch this grow.
And it's been exciting to watch the landscape, the technology landscape that we participate
in a change over time as well.
Yeah.
I mean, technology, you know, obviously that's one of my favorite topics to always talk about.
But you know, I mean, obviously there's so many bits and pieces that you can kind of,
we could dive into on that technology side.
I'll spare most of our listeners.
But you know, through those components and through the technology as, as the products
have gotten better, as the components have gotten better, the pricing has come down on
those components and products.
But what we can do with them has increased as well.
And you know, solar is not new.
It's been around for a long, long time.
And but it's kind of like what I do in my world of home security and technology around
your house is that now we're more involved in it.
We have more information.
We're able to see real time data.
We're able to get these bits and pieces that can help a lot of us get the light bulb to
come on and really kind of see, oh, this is working and this is how it is working.
And oh, I can see when my usage is high, I can see when my usage is low, and we can make
adjustments around our house that are going to be beneficial to obviously the power bill.
But then, you know, in generalized statements of the taxing of the grid, right?
I mean, we have seen some of those, we've seen many articles over the past year about
the electric grids and being overtaxed and underbuilt and under maintained.
And so there's a lot that goes into that.
And we won't dive too deep into there.
But we do want to talk about some of this stuff.
When we come back, we're going to bust some of these myths.
If you've got any questions or comments in regards to solar, you know, if you're in
the midst of a dispute, I'm sorry.
But if we can help you guide you and inform you about solar for your home or business,
give us a call or text 865-656-8255.
That's 865-656-8255.
We're going to take a quick break.
We'll be right back here on Around the House News Talk 987 WOKI.
Welcome back to Around the House.
I'm your host, Scott Brokamp.
Joining me this morning in studio, I'm speaking with John Hamilton from Solar Alliance.
And Brock is here to make sure John doesn't say anything he's not supposed to and kind
of keep us in line around here.
But I keep trying to give her a microphone and she just keeps pushing it away.
So we figure we'll just tease her a little bit while we're here this morning.
We are talking about solar, renewable energy.
And we're going to bust some myths.
But before we jump into that, there's one question I did want to ask because you guys
had been in the news recently about a project with KUB.
And it is a community solar project.
And I want you to kind of explain to us what a community solar project is and maybe what
this one with KUB is and how it may be different than others.
Yeah.
So first, I just want to say, like Solar Alliance Southeast, super proud to be a part of that
project.
Essentially, community solar is an alternative or an option so that people across the community
can come together to support renewable energy or the adoption of renewable energy.
In plain terms, you buy a panel or buy a share of the community solar project and then are
given some benefit by that.
That program is actually KUB.
If you search KUB Community Solar, it's on their webpage and you can see that kind of
how the program there works.
For our point, we designed the system.
We built the system.
We installed it.
And we're really proud of it.
A lot of times our work is kind of unseen.
It's sitting on a roof and especially in the commercial space, it's sitting on a roof and
you just don't see it.
We like to talk about this project.
It's probably the most visible project we have because if you sat on 40, going westbound
out of the city, good chance you've sat right in front of it for at least two or three minutes
in traffic, you know, right there on the, you know, just on the west.
Right before it.
Yeah.
Right before 640 comes in.
I mean, it's almost hard to miss.
Yeah.
It is hard to miss.
And that's good.
And I think it's a message of the furthest city that we are an energy city.
I mean, Oak Ridge National Labs, TVA, the dams that we all enjoy publicly producing hydro
power.
It is remarkable what the sun's fear.
I mean, 1982 World's Fair all about energy.
You know, it is remarkable what we do in this community for advanced clean energy and having
a very unique focal point right there on 640 is unique.
And we're proud to be a part of that.
Say solar lines help build that.
Yeah.
Absolutely.
And there are, you know, I mean, there's a lot of myths about solar and about energy
and, and, and all of that.
And I think you're right for me, you know, living here, it makes me feel good knowing
that at least the utility sources are buying into the latest technology to help and do
their best on a renewable standpoint, which is obviously it's going to benefit us.
It's going to benefit our community.
Yeah.
I think we talk about it in terms of the three E's.
So environmental stewardship, you can't live in this part of the country and not understand
the beauty and your responsibility to protect our environment that you can't do that.
So being smart about how we use our natural resources is, is a good thing and something
we're alert to.
The other part is economic development and how solar can affect us and help our business
or help our home save energy, reduce expense.
And the third part is energy independence, which we're not advocating necessarily removing
ourselves on the grid because the grid is a very vital thing to sustained economic life
here in East Tennessee.
But what we are advocating is being able to protect yourself using renewable energy to
offset your overall consumption and also protect yourself in terms of power outages
or those kinds of things which are inevitable and will happen.
So whether it's battery backup or a generator or the integration of solar with that, those
are generally the motivators that we see is probably not unfamiliar to his security as
well.
Sure.
Yeah, no, absolutely.
So, you know, one of the things that obviously I'm sure comes up to you guys and I guess,
maybe let me ask you what, what is the number one myth that you seem like you bust more
than any others?
There's two of them.
They go hand in hand.
The first one is, and this seems kind of crazy, but solar does not work at night.
Okay.
The second one also does not work in the shade.
Okay.
So, and the reason that's important because in the way that, and this is myth two is that
the utility will somehow, you know, credit you back money, you know, for the way that
you produce power.
They're not necessarily in that business.
And the point I'm saying here is that we use power differently in our home or in our business
throughout the day.
Sure.
So when that aligns, when solar production aligns with when you're using power, it saves
you money.
I can't because it's low cost, no entered, you know, no fuel source renewable energy
coming to you.
Sure.
But when you are using power and that solar is not active, you're having to pull that
energy from somewhere else.
Right.
And that's either the grid, you know, through your utility meter or battery.
If you've decided to store power there.
But I think a lot of misconceptions start with this under misunderstanding that how electricity
is produced must align with your, you know, must align with how you use power in order
for it to make the most economical sense.
Sure.
And, you know, that some of that comes from old baggage.
When I first got here, TVA had a program called GPP and they would buy your power and there
was an incentive to do that.
That went away somewhere around 16 or 17 somewhere around maybe 18.
Start to run together, but it's gone.
So that program doesn't exist.
So as a result, most of the residential systems we sell nearly all, I would say, have batteries
as a component.
Sure.
So that you can use or move the power that you've made and with solar to a different
time.
Right.
That's that, that storage capacity.
Right.
And I think it, you know, again, I'm by no means am I anywhere of knowledgeable in this
stance standpoint is, is obviously you guys are, but I think that to me, one of the misconceptions
come in is that I think people think that solar is a, it's going to take the place of
type of scenario and it's not, you know, this is just a, this is a partner with.
Yeah.
It can take the place of, but to do that requires you have to have a system that's as resilient
as a grid.
And that means adding energy storage or a generator, some combination so that you have
the power you want when you need it.
And that's a tough thing to buy on your own, which is why the utility exists.
Exactly.
You know, offsetting your consumption or using it in certain ways is a very smart, you know,
decision, especially as we look to the future with electric vehicles, all the things that
you're looking at.
Oh yeah.
We're using more power and we're using more power, but at the end of the day, you know,
we, we in almost all circumstances are we partnering with the grid?
You know, you kind of, you mentioned it a little bit before about a buyback program.
You know, there are a lot of areas in the country that actually have a buyback program
for solar.
But we don't have that here.
Is that right?
Yeah.
So, so after the GPP went away, the TVA does have a program called dispersed power providers
at DPP.
So there are certain programs and qualifications that you could see a marginal benefit from
excess power going back to the grid.
Those do exist.
They're mostly more usable on the, on the commercial level.
Right.
For example, you might have a weekend where you're down, but you have a lot of solar capacity.
Sure.
So maybe make more sense there, but it's few and far between and that we, that we see,
you know, really successful buyback incentives working or making it possible to do that.
North of us in Kentucky, you know, outside of the TVA region, they have net metering.
It's a whole different relationship.
So produce more power than you make, you know, than you know, they benefit or they credit
your bill, but that's just not an option for us.
So we have to be smarter about this, how we size the system.
Right.
And we have to be smarter about how we size a battery component of that to make it make
sense.
Right.
Well, and again, and kind of like we alluded, you know, thinking of solar, obviously in
our area, you know, we hear, I mean, I hear it.
Well, TVA, they don't buy back.
They don't buy back.
Well, you know, but we also, we have the benefit of what the cost is from TVA as well versus
what it is in some other areas too.
Absolutely.
Again, we're real proud of what we do with utilities.
Yeah.
I mean, KUB, the guys and guys KUB are working hard every day to ensure distribution is up.
Metering takes place.
They're planning for the future.
You know, they're working really hard at that, just like Appalachian Electric and just like
LG and E, again, KU, who we've all done work for in our region projects for directly for
them.
You know, so they're out there and in part of it, the TVA complaint sometimes is a business
model really thing.
Sure.
You know, KUB doesn't generate the power.
They, in most cases, the vast majority, they buy the power from TVA.
So it doesn't really help them if solar, you know, they have to pay somebody else for
solar as well.
You know, so it just doesn't make business sense.
Right.
But the utilities in the TVA area are working hard at looking what is in the future and how
that's going to shape it.
And TVA, frankly, has been a major part of the economic development of our region because
of low cost energy.
So fighting that is not something that we do.
Right.
You know, it's just how do we work best together?
Exactly.
You know, so again, kind of as we mentioned, thinking of solar as an additional component
to, and again, and so as we, that's kind of one of the misconceptions and myths.
And as we look at those things here locally in our area, well, there's reasons for that.
And again, as we just mentioned, the cost of energy to us versus what it is in other
areas as to why some of those incentives may be different here than where they are in other
areas across the country.
So again, we're going to take a short break.
But if you have questions, if you need to get some professional answers, give us a call
or text 865-656-8255.
That's 865-656-8255.
I am Scott Brokamp and we will be right back here on Around the House on News Talk 987WOKI.
And welcome back to Around the House.
I am Scott Brokamp, your host for this morning.
And I am speaking with our friends over at Solar Alliance.
I have John Hamilton here with us.
And well, I don't know, maybe we're just going to call her the boss of the room right now,
and Brock, making sure that we all stay on track around here because we all know I like
to get sidetracked.
But anyway, thank you for listening.
If you're just joining us, we are talking about renewable energy.
Our guests this morning are from Solar Alliance.
You can find them at solaralliance.com.
And if you have been listening, they are one of their most recent, most, I guess, higher
profile.
Most visible.
Most visible installations has been the KUB Community Solar Project that you can see
right there on I-40 as you're waiting for traffic to clear as 640 merges in.
So we also have a caller on the line with us this morning.
David, how are you this morning, sir?
Hey, I'm good.
I know you all just said the KUB doesn't have a buyback program.
I get that.
But what if I'm generating more electricity during the day than I'm using?
Obviously, I'll use more at night.
Will my meter run backward and give me credits or would that be considered a buyback program?
Oh, wow.
Great question, David.
Thank you.
John.
Yeah, that would be considered a buyback program.
So in what the term most frequently used for that type of scenario where when you overproduce
with solar, and then the utility credits your bill, that's called net metering.
So the net usage is what you're billed.
That's not what happens in most, in any case, in TVA.
Now there are what I mentioned before, there is a, it's called the DPP program.
There are some utilities that will pay you for overproduction, but it will not be what
you pay them for your consumption.
So it's not a, it's not a one to one like you see in Kentucky with net metering, or
if you come from California, you've moved from the area from most other parts of the
country, that's not the same relationship.
So you may be able to take some incentive there, but it's not going to be the same or
equitable to what you're paying, which is why in most cases we opt for some kind of
battery system to move or shift that load.
The other option, if you don't mind me adding Scott, is you could also, you can go on your,
if you're a KUB customer, you can actually go on your bill now, or you're the website
and look at your bill and you can see how much power you use during the day and how
much power you use at night.
And that will give you a fair, really just once over of how you use power and then what
maybe makes sense if you were considering solar, because it just doesn't work out that
you have selling power to the KUB and it just isn't the way to go.
Right.
Got it.
David, thank you very much for your call this morning, buddy.
We appreciate you.
Thank you, sir.
So, you know, I mean, again, this is, as we were talking earlier, and I will keep reiterating,
solar is a good tandem solution, right?
It is, it's going to allow me to cut down on how that meter's running, how much that
meter's running, and obviously, again, the data, the data, data, data, data, it's all
about data.
The more information that we have, the better we are to be able to predict and protect.
And those are really, you know, a part of our key environments that if I know when my
highest usage is for my utilities, then now I can make some changes.
I can do something about it.
Yeah.
So, again, most of our business is in the commercial space.
So commercial solar, or, you know, it changes the incentives that are available change,
but also so does your power consumption.
So generally speaking, you're running shifts during the day.
Higher consumption during the day than maybe even a third or fourth shift that might be
at night.
So in those cases, the applicability of solar for commercial solutions is often easier.
Sure.
But you're right.
The data is essential.
Understanding how you use power is the most important factor when considering the size
of a system.
If you are a low, you're already very energy efficient or you have a, you know, you have
intermittent use on the facility or in your home, like a cabin or something like that.
HVAC system is generally your primary driver during the day, Tom.
So sizing it around that makes the most sense.
And we've done system as small as like three kilowatts, which is, you know, roughly small
enough to generally creep under your usage.
Now, if you have a pool and you have a larger home and your electric bill is upwards of
250, then you could probably move that into a three or four or five kilowatt system even
and still not see a lot of overproduction.
After that though, really you need to consider batteries or energy storage and how that could
shift in your shift, the, when the energy is produced into the time when you're using
later.
So let's talk a little bit about, about businesses, small businesses in particular.
There is, you guys are doing, as you mentioned, you're focusing a lot in that commercial space
right now, but there's a reason for that.
Right.
The, the, the stack of incentives that are available, mostly through the, the, the IRA,
the federal law that came out is just, it's, it's, it's the best it's ever been.
So yours, you've got a 30% based tax credit.
You've got additional percentages that are, if you're using domestic content, which is
certainly achievable that you can get.
And more importantly, most of our area outside of Knoxville proper, if it, if you're a small
business in a rural area, the USDA is offering a grant that is up to 50% of the system.
So if you add those, you know, you're looking at a one or two year return.
Um, with a over 80% of it coming to you from tax credits or grants and those kinds of,
uh, those kind of incentives are just, you know, kind of almost too good to be true,
but that's what we try to do on a daily basis is navigate, uh, and show small businesses
how that works.
Again, this is, you have to be considered a rural small business.
So, sure.
Um, but you know, we, we will have our first grant submitted even in Oak Ridge, which right
outside Oak Ridge is considered a small bit of rural area.
So rural is not necessarily what most of us think of rural anymore.
Um, but, uh, either an ag producer or rural small business.
So a dentist or a veterinary hospital, animal hospital or a wedding venue or a insurance
company.
Uh, we've, I mean, we've done this several times in Morristown proper.
I mean, just rooftop projects in Morristown that you never see unless you're looking
at it from the worst.
So I mean, it sounds like, you know, uh, I'm not going to go on any conspiracy theories.
I know a lot of people do, but a lot of times when the government offers incentives and
they offer grants for doing things, a lot of times there's a lot of hoops and a lot
of loopholes that we have to try to be mindful of and work through.
So I mean, a, I think from what I understand of this, you, your team helps navigate that
and helps kind of a pre-qualify of whether or not this project is going to be even capable
of being qualified for these types of grants.
Right.
And that is part of the education process.
So the first thing is recommending and advising you on a system that's not going to be wasteful
in terms of overproduction or insufficient for your purposes.
That's step one.
Step two is looking at the, you know, under, you know, educating you on the system, on
the, uh, the grants and incentives are available, walking you through that.
And if it comes down to it in the case of the USDA grant, the REAP grant, then we'll
write the grant as well.
We can help you go through that process.
We were, you know, to help you understand what you need to wear and how you need to
register to participate, et cetera.
But that is what we do.
What we don't do is offer financing and what we did, and we generally, you know, obviously
as a result, we spend a lot of time with our customers trying to just advise them on options.
Sure.
Well, and, and again, I mean, you're, you're absolutely correct.
The education part of, uh, of just our solar and renewable resources here, protecting our
beautiful landscape of East Tennessee.
Um, you, this isn't, this isn't, uh, I'm going to, uh, I'm going to, uh, uh, uh, uh,
I'm going off the cuff here cause I randomly run off the rails constantly in life.
So, but one of the things that I really see as a potential concern is we, we talk about
land availability when we talk about development and urban development here locally.
So I'm assuming that some of these community solar projects, like with KUB, they're going
to be land intensive.
Yeah.
That's a great, great comment.
Yeah.
So one of the things I really loved about KUB and frankly, one of the design challenges
in that case was you had a, um, you had, you had an old site, an old site where there
were some issues about soil contamination or possible soil contamination and you have
TVA transmission lines running over that property, which essentially made it unusable for the
city, um, to be able to develop that into something else.
Um, a lot of brownfield sites are like that where you don't have a lot of options with
the land.
So in this case it was, it was genius.
I mean, it's, it's highly visible.
It accomplishes the public reach, the public facing aspect of it.
You're not really doing anything else with that property.
Um, uh, because you can't really be used for anything.
Yeah.
There's easements running through it.
So it's, it's dead land.
Uh, I, uh, I admire, uh, and I think it's, it's incredible to look at some of the large
scale solar projects that are out there, big, you know, 100 megawatt sites and those kind
of things.
But I have an equal concern about how we're using that kind of land.
I mean, I, it's not a great application.
And frankly, those are for me in some areas now, maybe in the desert or, you know, I don't,
I have no idea.
I never lived there, but, uh, you know, in those cases, those type systems are being
in interconnected to the grid.
They're just like any other generating station.
Sure.
And you know, it's, it's coming from a centralized place and then distributed.
Yeah.
What we really advocate for is distributed generation.
So if you have a new roof or you have a warehouse facility or some kind of manufacturing facility
using what is already dead real estate, which is your roof for the production of energy,
production of clean energy, it just, we think that that is, that makes sense.
The other thing it does is puts the generation of power at the facility, not, you know, not
being commute, not being distributed over transmission or distribution lines.
So it's ready for you.
It's ready for the adoption of batteries in the future.
It's ready for those kinds of technologies.
And I think those, we often call those micro grids.
Those kind of that kind of technology is what's going to help us become more resilient and
make the grid more adaptable when you start layering on electric vehicles and those kind
of things.
The, the, the challenge I think is not centralized power production being distributed.
It is, how do we get more power production on the periphery?
Correct.
Got it.
Yeah.
Again, working together, working together.
Hey, if you've got questions, comments about anything solar, give us a caller text, 865-656-8255.
Or you can call toll free at 1-800-951-8255.
We're going to take a short break right here on around the house on news talk, 987-WOKI.
And welcome back to around the house.
Such a beautiful morning out today.
We are, well, we're producing renewable energy in this room today because we have the professionals
on that with us.
John Hamilton and Anne Brock from solar alliance.
So John, I know that we've talked about the small business aspect and, and busted some
myths.
Um, so, you know, I know you guys had a project recently that was helping a nonprofit and,
and that was kind of a near and dear, especially to Anne's heart over there.
And, and it's a good reason why.
So tell us a little bit about that project.
Yeah.
We, um, you know, again, most of what we do is community.
We're really proud to have, um, finished that project for KUB right there on 40.
And we also are very proud of our customers, our residential customers that we do.
It's not a vast portion of our work, but, um, the job that, uh, and wanted to talk about
with faith Lutheran and Oak Ridge was just fight out really exciting.
It was nice to see that, um, they had put a lot of thought into how they wanted solar
to work for their church and their community, their congregation.
They had put the effort into researching what it was going to take and what the best option,
most responsible option for that congregation.
And the fact that they chose us and allowed us to work for them and, uh, and put that
system on their system was just incredible.
And it's, um, it's a unique application because it is a church and it's a nonprofit.
And you know, there are some incentives that along with the small business incentives that
were out there, there are, there is a direct pay option now, uh, for nonprofits and, you
know, people who can't necessarily leverage tax credit and, uh, being able to put all
that together for them and, and, uh, support them in their stewardship mission, uh, was
really tremendous and, uh, we're pretty proud of that.
Yeah.
Well, you know, in, in just, again, I mean, being a nonprofit as they are, uh, helping
them find ways to have more resources to give back into the communities that they serve
is amazing.
So, um, John, thank you so much for joining us this morning.
If you want to get in touch with the folks at solar alliance, the easy way is just go
to solar alliance.com that's solar alliance.com.
Um, and they're happy to, you know, come out, evaluate your product and well, quite frankly,
help provide you some education and bust some of those myths about solar.
So, uh, thank you guys so much for joining me this morning.
And as we roll into our newly found fun bit fact of information, our topic of the day
today being May 6th, I hope that you guys enjoyed May the 4th be with you and Cinco
De Mayo.
Um, but before we take a break, it's time to talk about our topic of the day.
Of course, to Kentucky, to Kentucky Derby is today, the race known as the most exciting
two minutes in sports runs at exactly 657 this evening by seven wheel crown a winner.
You probably recall seeing the huge blanket of roses that they put on the winning horse.
But did you know all those roses weigh about 40 pounds?
And that brings me to what we really wanted to talk about for our topic of the day gardening,
specifically naked gardening.
The first Saturday in May is world naked gardening day.
It started about 18 years ago and has steadily increased in popularity as more people are
exposed to the idea.
I mean, I've just so, I mean, my mind is going wild here.
I have so many questions, so many thoughts, so, so many, uh, unfortunately vivid imaginations
going on right now.
So, hey, listen, if you find your neighbors outside naked today, just maybe go help them
pull some weeds, spread some manure, whatever the case may be, they are probably participating
in world naked gardening day.
Um, John, I know that you've anxiously been awaiting the opportunity to talk about this
topic.
Yeah.
I am.
I'm in fact, uh, having just found out about it.
I'm glad that it exists.
Number one, the second thing I'd say is, uh, you know, for those of you, uh, backyard,
backyard, uh, poultry experts, um, mind the chickens, that would be my first concern.
But honestly, I think the best advice came from Ann and I know that she's fully adopted
her role as a part of the solar community and a part of a solar company.
And so for Ann to all the listeners who participate in naked day, make sure you, uh, plenty of
sunscreen,
Yeah, no, no doubt about it.
Um, Chris, did you know about this?
Have you ever heard of this before?
I have never heard about this before, but at the same time, I'm not very surprised this
exists.
Well, I'm not either, which kind of brings us to why we started the topic of the day,
because as many of us know, every day is the national day of something crazy, wacky, wild,
and insane.
And we wanted to, uh, well, quite frankly, we wanted to just lighten up your morning.
Maybe you just needed a chuckle with your coffee or whatever it is you may be drinking.
Uh, after listening to this, I think some of these folks may start their day with a
shot of whiskey or, uh, a little something stronger than what I have in my cup.
Um, but, uh, you know, I mean, it's not really a surprise, I guess, you know, it's really
not.
Uh, and I have heard of this ironically enough a few years back, I heard about it.
I love reading news articles in the morning and that's where I came across it.
Um, and it is, uh, it, my understanding is it started, uh, overseas and has spread pretty,
pretty quickly throughout the entire world.
So again, if you see your neighbors, uh, out gallivanting in the nude today, they are
just doing some normal gardening.
Um, yeah, you know, so any rate, we're, uh, we'll talk a little bit about that when
we come back.
I do want to thank our folks from solar alliance for joining us this morning.
Um, and when we come back, we're going to be talking to, uh, a wonderful nonprofit that
many of us know very well.
It is near dear to many of our hearts.
So we're going to take a short break.
I hope you'll join us here in the second hour.
We'll be back with more around the house after this break here on news talk, 98 seven W okay.
I.
Good morning.
Welcome to around the house.
I hope you were enjoying our conversation the first hour with our friends from solar alliance.
And this hour we're, we were going to talk about some really good old fashioned, um,
community driven organization here.
Our friends from habitat for humanity are going to be joining us this morning.
And, um, I just got to say, if you've got any comments or questions or concerns about
naked gardening day, we would love to hear from you.
Uh, eight, six, five, six, five, six, eight, two, five, five.
This is, uh, you know, one of those wacky day of national day, world day of all I got
to say is, you know, I do a lot of work outside for my job, you know, every once in a while
we're hanging cameras and climbing around addicts and crawl spaces, et cetera.
And I just got to say pants are a valuable tool.
It helps protect me in a lot of ways.
And, uh, uh, just be careful of your partaking in national, uh, in world naked gardening day.
I certainly hope that you're not done pruning any rose bushes.
That would be a, a painful, painful little culling experience.
Watch those pruners.
Yeah, exactly.
Watch the pruners.
That escalated quickly.
I mean, that really got out of hand fast.
Well, you know, Kelly, I mean, I guess you know how to make an entrance.
Well, there we go.
That's the, I jumped right in there.
Didn't I?
You did.
Oh, I'm going to keep my comments to a minimum from here on out.
Oh my goodness.
All right.
Well, if you're not partaking in world naked gardening day and you're looking for something
else to do that may require a shed of clothing, the farmer's market returns to market square.
Abby Stanley is teaching a container gardening course at Stanley's greenhouse.
She'll be with us next weekend to talk last minute Mother's Day gift ideas.
And you could join me to watch our Lady Vols softball team host South Carolina first pitches
at noon today.
We have one game one and we're looking to rally and sweep this baby out for a complete
list of events around town.
Go to visit Knoxville.com.
That's visit Knoxville.com.
My next guest represents a nonprofit organization has been partnering with Knox County families
for nearly 40 years to help them find affordable and secure housing.
She is the president and CEO of Knoxville habitat for humanity.
Welcome to the show, Kelly.
Good morning.
Thank you for having me.
Well, it's very exciting to be back here.
And to see all this Tennessee on.
I think that's so totally support Tennessee.
For those of y'all who don't see what I see, Scott is from head to toe in orange and blue
right now.
Well, I may be a little parcel of my Lady Vols.
You know, we are my company.
I'm happy to say we are a corporate sponsor of our Lady Vol Boost Her Club, which is the
initiative that supports our female student athletes.
And well, as a dad of two girls.
Let me just tell you, I have two, two little assly girls and you know, I think for me and
I digress real fast and I'll wrap this up.
But for me, my little girl was forced into playing basically co-ed sports and she was
better than most of the boys on the team.
But yet, you know, being who she was in her stature, it wasn't always accommodating for
her to be a part of co-ed sports.
And so we are, we are big fans of our CBFO softball league over here in Farragut.
And, and just my wife and I have turned into huge proponents for our Lady athletes.
And I mean, I'm just, I just can't say enough about what some of our organizations do to
help support our Lady Vols.
They're just really, really blessed in Knoxville to have just continuing support of the Orange
across the board.
You got that right.
You know, Lady Vols and men's sports and all sports where we are a truly, truly a team
that run, I mean a city that runs Orange and a city of volunteers.
Thank heavens for us at Habitat.
We need them.
You're absolutely right.
See.
So Knoxville Habitat for Humanity been around since 1985.
Yes.
How long have you been here?
A while.
I got, now this is, this is the thing when I say it, you're supposed to go no way.
Yeah.
In September, it will be 29 years.
Wow.
Yeah.
So I started when I was five.
Yeah.
Are you sure?
I, yeah, I'm going to say you must have started at least at one.
Oh gosh.
Yes.
I'll pay you later.
Oh.
Yes.
I've been around a long time.
I started with Knoxville Habitat, we were building our 48th house.
Wow.
And, and we're, we just served Knox County.
I mean just served, but Knox County is a large county, but there are surrounding affiliates
around us.
So we are in Knox County.
And right now we're, we're in the, anywhere between, I think we're around 670 homes that
we have built.
We've got sold.
That's amazing.
And just to think that you have been helping families for 29 years.
I mean that, that is, that's remarkable, remarkable in itself.
Well, you're very kind Scott, but I'm very quick to say, I just lead the effort.
I'm not the one doing it.
You don't want to see me with a hammer.
You don't want to see me with a paintbrush.
You know, I've got an incredible, this organization has an incredible staff that lead our work
and do the, do the leading and, and take care of everything.
I just get to come and talk to you and get out in the community and talk about all the
good things they're doing.
Well, you know what?
Just like when I talk with my, my little girl's softball team, right?
We talk about how it is a team sport and everybody has to be their piece of the puzzle and not
every piece does the same thing, but every piece is necessary to make the picture.
So see there.
Well, I use the pie.
Everybody in there has a slice of pie, but with all the pieces hit together in the middle.
Yeah.
Well, there you go.
Well, so we're going to take a bite out of your pie here.
So you're building what your fourth neighborhood in Oksa.
Yes.
We have a neighborhood we're doing right now in strawberry plains.
Actually, right after this, I'm going to go do a house dedication, which is the most
incredible experience ever because it's where we actually celebrate the completion of the
home and we celebrate with a family that the structure that has been built with a community
support and with a partner family is going to become a house.
In the next couple of weeks, they will sign the deed and they will start paying for that
house, usually 25 year mortgage and we'll then take that money that they're paying into
that and put it into building more homes.
That's amazing.
That is amazing.
Well, and of course, if you're not familiar with habitat for humanity, Kelly's going to
help tell us a little bit about it.
But you know, one of the things that I think most of us are aware of is that you require
some sweat equity.
All the families have to be partners.
I mean, truly it is a partnership in everything that we do.
We're not giving anything away, which is something I'm real proud of.
There is ownership.
So the donor, the volunteer, the family, our organization, we all are invested in this
opportunity to enhance someone's life.
Families have to qualify to be part of the program.
And right now, the very first basic is just essentially financial ability.
Every family, we don't want anyone up for failure.
So every family has to be able to make the monthly mortgage payment that also has escrow
and taxes and insurance.
And that cannot be more than 25% of their monthly income.
So that's what we're looking at first.
And then once that they are approved, we get in and they have to come to classes.
We have budget classes that families have to partake in and be part of for a year.
Learning really how to manage their money.
It's their money.
We're not going to tell them how to spend it.
But we want to equip them with the decision-making skills to be able to make those decisions
moving on down the line.
Because once that house is deeded to them, it's theirs, just like everybody else's mortgage.
But this is the opportunity and time for us to teach and train.
And a lot of the families that partner with us have never had that opportunity or anybody
to put that kind of trust in them.
There's also landscaping classes.
Once they're in their home, there are home maintenance classes.
So we teach people how to do simple home maintenance around their house.
We do have warranties like any homeowner for the first year on certain things.
But other things, if you're toilet sticks, you got to learn to fix it.
And certain that we have classes and we teach that.
We have some other like how to be a good neighbor class and how to...
Is that open to anybody?
I might have a few recommendations.
Well, yeah.
Well, the budget class is truly the class that is required.
The others are highly, highly, highly encouraged.
And you get sweat equity for all of those classes.
So the homeowner does have to participate and be part of the program.
And then they will select a lot that we have on the listing.
And right now we are only building in Ellen's Glen, which was named after our founder, Sis
Mitchell.
And it is out on strawberry plains out there.
And they're beautiful homes.
Oh my God, I encourage anybody to drop through out there and see Ellen's Glen.
It really is pretty.
That's amazing.
And that's one of the things, obviously, that I just love about what you guys do is that,
you know, it is...
It's an educational process.
You are really...
You are so fundamentally changing the landscape and the lives of these individuals by helping
prepare them.
You know, again, many of us may not have had that education and the budget friendly and
knowing what to do and how to do it.
And so you guys are just...you're paving the way for quite frankly, life-changing experiences
for all of those to come.
We are going to take a short break right here.
If you've got questions or comments, give us a call or text, 865-656-8255.
We'll be right back here out around the house.
Newstalk 987-WOKI.
Welcome back to Around the House.
I am speaking with Kelly Schultz from Habitat for Humanity.
And well, if you just need to learn what you can do to help out in your community, we got
a great way for you here.
Kelly, thank you so much for joining us this morning.
I just talk our listeners through and talk me through because I think there's a lot of
misconceptions about what you guys do.
But what's that process like for you guys, for a family who is in need or is coming into
your program, walk us through that process?
Well, I'll tell you too, Scott, right now it's tough.
It is tough because there's such need in our community for home ownership, for safe shelter,
and rents are even so high.
But you can only do so much.
So it's really been heartbreaking the past couple of years what we can do because of
just extreme costs.
But with a family, they would apply for the program, but we were not taking any more applications
for this year, sadly to say.
We filled that up that we had such just need.
And we don't want to set anybody up to sit and wait and wait and wait.
So we, but families come into the program.
They are based, like I said, mostly right off the bat from income, being able to make
the payment.
Right.
And then once they can, we do see that they have the financial capabilities to make a
mortgage payment and escrow with their monthly salary.
Then they come in the program, they take the classes.
Then they will select a lot.
Again, right now we're building in this neighborhood.
And once we get to that point, we will start their house.
We build three, four and five bedroom homes.
Families do not get to select their size.
It's really based on criteria from Habitat International with children and gender and
so forth.
And then again, as you know, I mean, a five bedroom home takes a larger lot.
And so we also don't get to build a lot of those just based on economics.
We don't have a lot of that space for them.
So most of the homes we build are three and four bedroom.
They're about anywhere between 1400 and 1800 square feet.
The homes we're building in Ellen's Glen do have a garage, one car garage.
And they have sidewalks and underground utilities.
We were very blessed to have a partnership with Knox County that provided some infrastructure
money to help us do that.
And it truly is a neighborhood as we're taking, you know, as you go out there and drive around
and how we're doing the houses.
The families then will purchase the home at a 25 to 30 year mortgage and we hold the notes.
So we are our own guarantee.
So we also are the ones that we do our mortgages there with someone who does that and they
will make the monthly mortgage payments, you know, to us.
And again, if they get behind like I'm not, they get a letter and, you know, the great
thing is, is with us holding that.
We know life sometimes gets in the way and we will provide the opportunity one time in
the, hello.
Hey, that was pretty cool.
Okay.
Our electricity went out.
Woohoo.
That was quick though, that generator.
So we still, we will provide the opportunity for them to have a one time, you know, like
hiccup in life and we will assess that at the end of the mortgage because we hold that.
But it has to be something extreme.
They have to come up with another payment plan and so forth.
But we need that income to help build more homes.
So this year we'll do about 12 homes and it's 12 families that are going to get the
dream.
I wish it was so much more.
It's just so costly.
Right.
I mean, we were just talking about that construction costs have gone up at least 30%.
Over the past couple of years for us and we can only, we can only build so many because
we can't continue.
You can't pass all of that onto the family or it's not affordable.
Right.
So I'm going to just, I just want to ask, so how long have you guys taken on that model
of building the community?
This is our fourth subdivision.
We like to do infill in the city.
I think it's just such the basis and the, and the really the crux of our ministry to
go in and plant new families in established neighborhoods.
Right now that's just not an opportunity for us.
So this neighborhood that we're doing is providing us to be able to plant 35 families
together to do, you know, community together there.
And we're excited about that.
We actually have another piece of property that's very close to this one that we'll be
looking at and probably starting in either the end of 2024, the beginning of 2025.
Well, and that's, that's just amazing.
And I mean, look, I don't care.
I don't care where or how you can build it.
You're building it and that's what's important.
Well, it's tough.
And I mean, the thing is, is right now housing is just in such a need and there's a lot of
opportunity out there for rental.
It's still expensive, but there's not a lot for home ownership.
There's very, very, very few of us doing that.
And we just, we need to make sure that we're taking care of folks in our own community.
Right.
Yeah.
Well, and there's, you know, I mean, the reality of it is when things come available, even
those, those lots that are infill lots, I mean, when them things come available, they
just, they go at ridiculous prices and, and then there's, it's always seems to be a bidding
warning more on, on anything.
An average cost of a starter home is right around 300,000.
Yeah.
A starter home.
Wow.
Yeah.
I couldn't afford it.
I couldn't have afforded that.
I mean, seriously, it's, it's tough.
I mean, and, and that's just heartbreaking.
And we're, you know, I just want to make sure that we're taking care of the community and
the families and the folks so that they stay here and Knoxville continues to be the great
place that it is.
Right.
Well, in order for you guys to do that, it takes a lot of help and a lot of support.
And as you alluded early on, a lot of volunteers, it does take volunteers.
Our homes are built with volunteers.
And that really is the crux of what we do.
It's volunteers that teach our classes.
And sadly, volunteerism has been down the past couple of years.
And then, and I just, and I'm not, we're not real sure why that is.
It's actually nationwide.
There's some studies that are out about that, but it is, it's down and that's caused some
issues for us because if we don't have the volunteers out there, then we have to pay
subs to do it.
And then the cost of the house goes up more.
So, but we have volunteers, we have a restore and we use volunteers there.
We have volunteers in our classes.
We have the established volunteers that worked in the week to help catch up from build to
build.
And then we have our Saturday volunteers out building.
Yeah.
So what's the best way to get in touch with you guys to be able to volunteer?
It's to go to our website.
We actually have a whole little portal, you know, we've gotten very sophisticated.
We have a whole little portal for you sign up to be a volunteer so that, and it tells
you all the opportunities that we have and it allows you to do it how you want to.
And we, we would love to have you on a Saturday and you can pick your Saturday.
You just got to be willing to, you know, do whatever it is that's needed or if you want
to do something specific, then you've got to be a little more flexible on your days.
So go to Knoxville Habitat for Humanity dot com.
And, uh, you know, go look for that volunteer portal, get yourself signed up, find ways
to give back to our community.
Uh, there's, I mean, there's always so many opportunities to give back to our communities
and, and I, many that know me, I am, uh, I love getting, giving back.
I love being able to give back to our community in whatever way I can.
Um, and so I love your passion and I appreciate it.
Um, and so I love your passion and I enjoy just the desire that you have to give back.
Um, so what are some of the biggest needs that you guys are facing right now?
You, you briefly touched on it.
Volunteers, volunteers are one.
We also, um, we, we're in kind of a new space with us, with some, a little bit of funding
that we've received and we're in need of subcontractors.
And so we're also putting that big plea out that we have a bid room on our website to
go in and bid for, for different things that we need for, and we need some contractors.
So I would love to engage, get engaged.
Some folks that might be listening to this today to go in and look at that and come be
part of the work.
I mean, it's paid.
We're going to pay you.
It's not volunteered.
Uh, you don't have to donate, um, for that.
And then the other thing to just to put out is it is getting ready to be summertime and
a lot of folks are going to have kids that don't have much to do and we would love to
have them come and volunteer with us.
You have to be 16 to work on a job site.
Um, but we also, you know, can, in driving helps, I think, but we would love, you know,
if somebody wants to pull a group together, I mean, it can be your Sunday school class.
It can be your bunco class.
It can be your poker group, whatever, um, to come and come out and work with us to do
that.
It's another great way that we can, um, involve the community.
And then the other is we do have a restore.
Our restore is located in downtown West and it is all, I mean, we have purchased some
new items.
You certainly need to come by there and look at some of the things that, um, that we have
purchased, but the majority of it is all donated material.
So two, when it's getting a little warmer and you've got that extra time and you're
cleaning out, think of us to donate your items to.
Well, in, in really the items that you guys have in the store are, I mean, it covers everything.
We actually do.
We have clothing, very few habitat restores have clothing.
There are restores in surrounding counties around us, but we do have clothing and then
probably two thirds of our store is construction related.
Right.
Windows and doors and cabinets and flooring and rugs and knobs and hinges and everything.
Exactly.
And it, it's, if you're going there looking for something specific, you're probably not
going to find it.
And if you're going in there looking just to browse, you'll probably find everything
that you need that you didn't know you needed.
But we have furniture and, you know, knickknacks and chotchkees and things like that too.
And all of that goes back into the ministry.
Yeah.
Well, and I found myself doing some shopping there.
Thank you, Scott.
We appreciate it.
Yeah.
Well, I was looking for kind of a unique part.
And then it was from not really a super old home, but it was a 20 year old home.
And somebody suggested, well, just go browse by, check out the restore.
Because a lot of times when people go in and they got and do remodels, if it's in good
condition, they'll donate it.
And a lot of times it may find its way into one of your stores or into your store.
And so I went to took a look and by golly, I actually found what I needed.
Did you really?
Wow.
I think it's one of the rare few that go in looking for something and find what they
want.
I know, but I did find many replacements in case I didn't find it.
So just very unique store and just so cool.
I mean, just going in browsing and checking out is just, it's worth the trip.
It just is worth the trip.
We are going to take a quick break.
I'm going to come back and continue speaking with Kelly Schultz, talking about habitat
for humanity.
And quite frankly, we're going to talk about what you need to do to get involved.
We've told you where to go to get involved, but we need you, right?
We're even better than the army because we're right here locally.
So stay tuned.
Come back and check us out.
We're going to take a short break on around the house right here on News Talk 987 WOKI.
Welcome back to around the house.
If you have questions about how you can help habitat for humanity, or maybe you just have
a question in general that you would like to ask Kelly, she's really good on her toes.
She'll answer any of those questions you have.
865-656-8255.
As long as it's not about World Naked Gardening Day, I think we're in good shape.
Kelly, thank you so much for joining me this morning.
I just am so, we do have a gardening class with families.
We work with the master gardeners of Knoxville, and they come out.
We have a program called Hugg.
Yes, I'm aware of that program.
Which is Habitat Urban Gardens.
Yes, don't do that during Naked Gardening Day.
Exactly.
I'm just sitting here thinking that I'm like, oh my gosh, we need to make sure that we're
safe today, but we just need to make sure that doesn't happen.
That might be something we don't want to see.
We need to ask those professionals, if they're aware of World Naked Gardening Day.
World Naked National Garden Day.
I know I mixed it up, but yeah, we do need to ask them that.
It's worldwide.
I mean, worldwide.
I didn't know the passion to garden naked was so strong in our world today.
You don't have a lot of laundry to do.
This is very true.
So besides gardening, you guys, you can't do what you do without a lot of help.
We have to have help to do what it is that we do.
You have a lot of opportunities for that.
Corporate sponsorships, just volunteers to help do builds.
That's exactly right.
The way we currently fund and build the homes is with a corporate sponsor or church or business.
We call them a covenant partner.
That is that someone comes in and says, okay, we're going to partner with you on this home.
We will bring volunteers out for anywhere between four and eight workdays, depending
on the house and depending on getting all of the inspections and different things like
that done.
We have a plan there and you will work alongside with the family, getting to know the family
and building this house with them.
And that right now, a sponsorship cost is $55,000.
And that's about, I used to say it, and that's about a fourth of the cost of the house right
now.
And then we match those costs with grants and with homeowners making them mortgage payments
and donations and other just fundraising things that we do to be able to cover the hard cost
of that home.
But it's $55,000.
We have some organizations and churches that will take that on themselves.
I just, I have to give a big shout out to home federal bank who has been the longest
standing covenant partner with us, building with us for 32 years.
It's actually the longest standing sponsor in the state of Tennessee, some federal bank.
And then I also want to give a big, big shout out to our friends over at UT in the housing
arena, Jerry Adams and residence halls over there.
They build a house with us every year and they raise their own money through the residence
halls, the students and the kids do fundraising and then come out and build.
And it's awesome.
That is awesome.
And then we've had students that have come and help that now have gone on to their corporate
life or their professional life and then they still come back and build with us or they've
gotten involved with habitats in the areas where they are.
So that's really great.
But we also recognize a lot of people right now can't fund a whole house.
So we put partnerships together and we'll put different groups together to come out
and build.
And it's just, it's been tougher to be able to do that.
But that's how we've continued to build.
We're looking at some other different opportunities out there, but so is everybody else.
Right.
Yeah.
I mean, you have to be diligent to look for the sources and the resources to be able to
find ways to continue to do all of these amazing things that you guys do in our communities.
So, I want to ask, unfortunately, I have not physically been able to partake in a build.
We're going to change that.
So, supple season's over.
Well, Scott, you're on it.
I have been a part financially to help support organizations.
But so, tell me a little bit about how that process works because like, you know, I'm
in new construction all the time.
So do you have like a general contractor of volunteers that oversees this project?
We have a staff of five in the construction department.
So we have a procurement person who procures all of our donations and all of the items
that we need.
I have an instruction supervisor that oversees all of that as well as development of new
subdivisions and properties.
And then we have folks that are in the field.
We have these house leaders and site leaders that are in the field overseeing things.
But you know, really, then we have what we call crew leaders.
And those are volunteers.
So we'll have a crew leader that will lead, that's a volunteer that will lead siding or
that will lead roofing or that will lead interior walls, cabinets and trim.
It's a volunteer that comes in, does that, and then leads the other volunteers.
And we are always in need of those crew leaders.
And really what we're wanting is we'll teach you how to do it the habitat way.
We're just wanting.
But this is the opportunity where you can't hammer it.
You're teaching someone how to hammer and do it.
You can't do it.
So we have folks that that's what they want to do and we'll take them as well.
But that's not a crew leader.
Crew leader is really about teaching and training.
Then at our restore and at, we have a crew that works in their warehouse that puts together
the door frames and the different things that we might need.
We used to do sheds.
We're not doing sheds now with this garage, but to build components to take to the jobs
that so they work in the way we have a warehouse.
And so we have a group.
Those are all volunteers, volunteers to paint.
We have a volunteer electrical crew that license electrician as a volunteer and, you
know, that does that.
So we have a lot of needs.
And if it's just something you're wanting to learn, they love to teach and train.
And so we invite you to come and do that as well.
And again, the easiest way to get involved, go to Knoxville Habitat for Humanity dot com.
That's Knoxville Habitat for Humanity dot com.
Or you can call them at 865-523-3539.
If you don't want to get dirty, if you don't want to build, if you don't want to do any
of the actual physical construction, guess what?
Good old fashioned money is a good place to start.
I'm sure you'd be happy to accept some donations with you.
We certainly would.
Another thing that if I just have a second to talk about too is there's another way that
you can make lasting impact.
And that is through your estate planning.
That's something that, you know, a lot of folks don't want to think about or talk about.
But what a lasting legacy to be able to provide the money to build a home for somebody through
your estate and through your will.
And we love to talk to you about those opportunities as well.
Because right now you might not have it, but, you know, possibly with your assets and things
that you do.
And, you know, that's also such a tribute to your family that you're able to do this
and you're doing it.
It's kind of a lasting memory for you to your family.
So think about that as well.
But we also would like your check or your cash right this second too.
Anyway, I mean, just bear change to whatever it is, bring it on in.
Well, you know, you mentioned to help from UT and, you know, one of the things that I
think is just amazing about that is that's, that's helping to nurture and grow our students
to think about giving back and providing for our communities.
And when they have that opportunity to see the difference that they make, I think to
me that's one of the biggest benefits that obviously you can take from there.
And as you mentioned, as they graduate college, they go to their professions.
Sometimes they give back where they're at.
Sometimes I'm sure they encourage their companies to be a corporate sponsor and in sponsor the
build of a habitat home.
But just being able to take part in that volunteering aspect, I know for me and for my family, one
of the things that is so awesome and amazing is when we know that we can actually help
by being able to just give back into our communities.
And you guys obviously are a huge resource to be able to do that.
So as we talked very early on in our conversation, it's about educating.
It's about not just educating the new homeowner you're doing the build with, but all of the
volunteers involved.
I'm sure you've probably got stories of volunteers that you have seen come back time and time
and have blossomed.
Yes.
Yes, absolutely.
And the other thing too about education is giving folks an opportunity to work alongside
and learn from so many different types of people that they might not cross their path.
You know, your neighbor is not just the person who is physically you can look out your window
and see next door to you.
Your neighbor could be across town, but it gives folks the opportunities to come and
work with all types of different people and forge friendships and lifetime, you know,
partnerships that they might not have ever had that.
So it too is educational and learning that teaches us that we're all not the same.
We're all different and hey, I can like you and you're totally different from me, but
I like you.
Right, exactly.
And we can work together.
Yeah.
Exactly.
And only we can make a difference.
Yep.
And we can make a difference together.
The other thing just quickly I want to mention too is we also have a program for veterans.
That's also a big need.
We have a whole veterans program and we're actually very blessed that News Talk 98.7 is
a huge sponsor of our sports and clays tournament.
And that event goes to help support our veteran initiatives.
So there's a big need out there for veterans coming back that don't have housing.
Or, you know, a way to get involved.
And then we also have a critical home repair program where we work with folks that are
in their home that own their home and we'll go in and do roofs or HVAC, really the large
ticket items.
Yeah.
And we're going to talk a lot about that when we, when we come back.
Okay, perfect.
Thank you.
See, cut me off.
Cut me off.
I, you know, hey, listen, you're like me.
We could just keep talking and forget all these breaks, but apparently we have to take
them.
So we're looking up, we are going to take a short break and we will be right back here
on around the house on News Talk 98.7 W okay.
I welcome back on around the house.
I'm Scott Brokamp in studio this morning.
We have Kelly Schultz from Habitat for Humanity.
But thank you all very much for listening.
By the way, we do appreciate your support.
And if you ever have questions, give us a call at 865-656-8255 or you can send a text,
whichever meets your fancy for this beautiful morning that we're on.
Kelly, before the break, you were started telling us a little bit about some programs
that you have and, and you have its critical home and repair.
Yes.
So fill us in on that.
It is a program that we started about three and a half years ago.
It was a initiative across our state with all affiliates with it through our Habitat
for Humanity of Tennessee organization.
And it was going in and working with folks that own their home, but had major repairs.
Different affiliates across the state handle it differently.
We'd never done it before.
A lot of affiliates have been doing it for years.
But we thought that it was a real compliment to our work and there's a huge need in Knoxville
for it.
And we started looking at how we could do it and do it best because we didn't want to
send volunteers into, you know, occupied space.
They've never done that.
We've only had volunteers start from the ground and build up.
We haven't had them tear things down.
So we started looking at it and said, you know, roofs are a huge, huge issue.
You've got to have a good roof.
And so many problems have happened in the house.
It's not to have a good roof on it.
So we said, okay, that's what we're going to do.
We're going to focus on the large ticket items.
So it was roofs and HVAC units.
Oh my gosh, Scott, there's such a need for that.
But again, through the program, it has to be, you have to be low income.
You have to be not be able to afford this or finance it.
And again, be approved.
So we started that and we've done about 70 homes in Knox County through this by doing
a roof and HVAC.
So often we do a little other something, but there's other organizations out there that
will do ramps and other, you know, remodel type programs.
So ours are really sticking to those two items.
And to be, to find out if you're eligible for that, again, you go to the website.
We have a certain person who is in charge of the critical home repair.
We have to do an assessment and there's some paperwork and things involved.
But we're actually deciding to, that program with the state is ending.
And so we are developing our own program to be able to do it.
We're still going to keep it.
So it still will be a really nice addition to Habitat and to Home Ownership.
But this also is about safe shelter and keeping folks, you know, in their homes through these
to large costly expenses.
Yeah.
Oh, and that's amazing that you guys not only have the, the wherewithal, but the ability
to really from your experience with this program of being able to analyze it, to be able to
find ways to keep it going.
Well, and the other thing is the program that we had that we've been part of was all, was
for seniors.
So, you know, and again, that's such a huge, huge need because CAC has a program that's
similar, but it's based on need.
And when you come in and there's someone that has a, you know, three or four kids, you know,
and they have this need and then a senior over here, it's tough to say what the need
is.
So the seniors were kind of being pushed out.
So that's the program we've done.
And the program we're going to have, we're opening up, it will be for all ages, you know,
for folks again, based on need, but there will be that emphasis on seniors and on veterans
as well.
We won't do it just for them, but there will be that, that emphasis on that because there,
because it's no one else is doing it.
Right.
So of course, my mind always likes to go.
So do you have any partnerships on that like KUB or anything like that?
Are they, there any partnerships in helping with like the HVAC type of scenario?
No, it's not right now.
Not right now.
You know, and that may be something that we, we couldn't do it with the program that
we were part of with the habitat Tennessee.
So as we grow and develop our program, that's something, you know, that we can certainly
look at KUB is a huge supporter of our work in other ways.
They plant a, come and plant a tree for every dedication that we do in the spring and fall.
They'll come and plant a tree.
Yeah.
Not in a power line, but they will come and plant, you get to pick the tree you want.
So KUB is a huge partner with us and what we do.
So there, we have a lot of partnerships that are out there.
I mean, it's just something that we're expanding in and looking at.
We have a great person.
It's a roofing contractor that works with us and gives us a break on costs to do those
roofs.
But there's just, you know, the thing is, is really getting the word out.
And then once you do that, it's heartbreaking.
It is heartbreaking to not be able to help everybody.
And we simply can't.
We just, we don't have the income.
We don't have, so it's, it's tough to pick and choose and how you do that.
But there's just such need in our community and, you know, delivering that message is
tough.
Yeah.
It's just tough.
So I just encourage folks to get out of their little box and see what you can do.
And I mean, it can be small, just a small or, you know, encouragement or, you know,
getting involved with, we'd love to have your involvement with us, but can involve with
something.
You know, get out and do something, get your kids.
And I mean, teach them that it's about giving back.
Right.
Yeah.
I mean, the value of giving back is just, it's insurmountable.
I mean, there's, there's nothing else that, that really compares.
And you know, and I will say, you know, you, you got to kind of prepare yourself for it.
Because like I said, you can't help everybody.
And when you get involved and you really start looking in and diving into the needs of a
community, you, you start to see the overwhelming needs.
And then, and then where so many communities are falling short on, on trying to help and
meet those needs.
And again, the thing that I love so much about you guys is that you're a come alongside,
we're going to teach you, we're going to help you to be able to sustain on your own.
And into me, that is one of the, obviously the cornerstones or earmarks of what you guys
do.
We have volunteers, one of the greatest things that somebody told me several years ago is
they said, you know, here we were planning to come out here.
Here I was planning to come out here and help somebody and I'm leaving here and I've been
helped the most.
That's right.
That's what happens.
So thank you so much for joining me this morning, Kelly.
You can go to Knoxville Habitat for Humanity.com, get involved, help out.
If you have missed a part of our broadcast and want to listen to an episode again, there's
a link on my website.
Just go to hissecurity.com and click on the A-T-H radio tab to find past shows.
I thank very much our guests this morning and remember around the house is produced by News
Talk 987 with guest coordination services by media, be media savvy.
Thank you for listening this morning.
I hope you enjoy some quality time around the house.