
On Aug. 30, Habitat for Humanity of Monroe County dedicated its first home built from a shipping container.
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – As students and faculty at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business look ahead to using their muscles this fall to build another home for a deserving Bloomington family, Habitat for Humanity of Monroe County recently dedicated a house based on an idea from the minds of Kelley and IU students.
On Aug. 30, Habitat for Humanity of Monroe County celebrated its first home built from a shipping container, which also was the first of its kind by a Habitat affiliate in Indiana. The foundation for project initially was laid in 2019 by students competing in the school’s inaugural Kelley Impact Competition.
The transformation of a shipping container into a 320-square-foot home, with one bedroom and bath, a living room and combined kitchen/dining space is nearly complete. The home also has a covered deck outside. Homeowner Charlie Lynn Abbott, who identifies as queer, non-binary and autistic, looks forward to planting flowers, berries, and bushes outside.
“I’ve never lived in a safe home before. Starting out in a place where family made my living situation unsafe, as an adult I moved into situations where poverty and my autism made living safely impossible. My physical and mental health have always shown the signs of this,” Abbott said at the ceremony. “Although I’ve put a lot of work into getting better, and becoming a better person, my living situation has been a constant barrier. A safe, affordable house isn’t just an object, or property for me. It is a promise of the opportunity to live a better life and create my future self. This is my life long, and ultimate dream.” (more…)












