New Americus home dedicated for Jenkins family as students, volunteers power Big Event build
AMERICUS, Georgia — Surrounded by volunteers, community partners and students who helped bring their home to life, David and Paris Jenkins and their family celebrated the dedication of their new home this week in Americus.
For the Jenkins family, the home represents not only a fresh start, but a safer and more stable place to live as Paris Jenkins navigates severe vision impairment — a challenge that made affordable, dependable housing especially important.
The house is the result of the Americus-Sumter Fuller Center’s annual Big Event build, a three-week effort that once again mobilized hundreds of volunteers — including more than 400 students from Georgia Southwestern State University and South Georgia Technical College, along with team members from Phoebe Sumter Medical Center.
The dedication ceremony highlighted both the scale of the effort and the deeper purpose behind it.
“To the only wise, magnificent and awesome God that we serve … we dedicate this house not just to this family, but back to you,” prayed the Rev. Glenn Bryant, a pastor and South Georgia Tech staff member. “Let your love abound. Let your peace abound. Let your joy abound.”
Bryant also thanked the many hands who made the project possible, noting “every instructor, every student, every organization … that came on these grounds that were unfinished … to give the finished product we’re standing on right now.”
Leaders from partner organizations echoed that spirit of service.
“It’s always great to see another house built,” said Marcus Johnson, Director of Community Relations & Volunteer Services at Phoebe Sumter. “This is going to start another legacy for Mr. Jenkins and his family.”
Georgia Southwestern State University President Dr. Michelle Johnston said the project reflects the kind of hands-on service her institution seeks for its students.
“We want our students for life to see opportunities and take those opportunities,” she said. “So thank you for giving us the opportunity to serve in this way.”
The three-week build required coordination of constantly rotating volunteer groups — a challenge that David Snell acknowledged during the ceremony.
“We start the morning with a great group, then they go to lunch and don’t come back, and another group comes,” Snell said with a smile. “So there’s a little bit of training that keeps happening, but we’ve gotten it down.”
Snell noted that the home marks a milestone for the ministry.
“This is our 10,001st house,” he said. “We feel that every house we build is a testament of God’s love — so this is the 10,001st testament of God’s love that we’ve been part of.”
Local leadership credited the success of the build to a strong volunteer core and steady on-site direction.
“We had a wonderful crew,” said Americus-Sumter Fuller Center Director Jody Wade, who also recognized house captain Dave Diffendal for his four weeks of donated leadership on the job site. “He was hard-driving, instructive and kept things moving forward.”
For the Jenkins family, the home also represents a significant personal investment. Partner families are required to contribute sweat equity hours and commit to paying back the cost of materials through a zero-percent-interest mortgage.
Vice President of U.S. Programs Stacey Driggers explained how families are selected.
“The first is need. The second is willingness to partner. And the third is the ability to pay,” Driggers said. “These homes are not a giveaway. It’s a hand up, not a handout.”
She emphasized that the impact extends beyond a single home.
“Their payments are going to go forward to help the next family,” she said. “So it’s not just about building houses — it’s about building dignity, community and a future that keeps growing long after the walls go up.”
The Jenkins family, parents of three teenage daughters and one adult daughter, completed their required sweat equity hours and worked alongside volunteers throughout the build.
As the ceremony concluded, the message remained clear: what was built in three weeks will continue making an impact for many years to come.
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