LANSING, Mich. — A Waverly High School class is celebrating its 50-year reunion by building a home for a local family through Habitat for Humanity in Lansing.
- The Waverly High School class of 1975 raised more than $40,000 for the Habitat for Humanity project.
- Classmates are spending a full week together building the home instead of a traditional reunion dinner.
- One classmate's home improvement company is donating the roof for the project.
The build comes with a unique twist. It's being led by the Waverly High School Class of 1975 as part of their reunion. 50 years after graduation, these classmates have reunited with some traveling from across the country to give back to the community that raised them.
WATCH: Waverly High School 50 year reunion builds home for local family
It's a reunion that has taken over a year of planning and fundraising. Back in December, I showed you the Waverly classmates who set out to raise $40,000 to build a Habitat for Humanity home as part of their 50-year high school reunion. Now, not only have they exceeded that goal — they're officially building the home.
"Well, I was very excited about getting here and seeing Mark and all the people we've been zooming for the last year and a half," said Joni DeGabriele.
DeGabriele traveled from California, and Mark Havitz from Canada, both of them shaping the idea of this reunion.
"It's something that I've secretly been plotting for a while and put it into action," said Havitz.
More than just a home build, it's a new way to catch up with classmates for alums like David Apol.
"Instead of having a reunion where you spend two hours and engage in shallow conversation, learn a few things now, we get to spend a whole week together," said Apol.
I also caught up with Mark Rapelje, who brought his classmate and neighborhood friend, Mark Brunette, to talk with me.
"To see these friends, in the fact that giving stability to a home or family is giving somebody the gift of hope," said Rapelje.
Brunette tells me his home improvement company is donating the roof to this build.
"I brought the whole program up to our operations meeting and wanted to donate the roof, so everybody agreed, let's do it," said Brunette.
During the interview, Rapelje's old Waverly football coach, Bill Taft, even stopped by to say hi. Taft is 96.
Together, their efforts are helping a local family put down roots in Lansing with a more affordable home.
Brent Taylor is President and CEO of Habitat for Humanity Capital Region, and talked me through it.
"Folks who 20-30 years ago could've bought, but have now been priced out because of the cost of real estate and the cost of construction, have that opportunity to purchase a home and a price that they know they can afford and again start to build that well that's permanent," said Taylor.
Think about friendships that have lasted 50 years. They probably had a strong foundation. And these friends are helping a family set its own foundation, with a home here in Lansing.
The build will continue through the week, with celebrations and the full reunion this weekend.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
Want more FOX 47 News? Here's how you download our Roku app
You can also see the latest news from across our mid-Michigan neighborhoods by liking us on Facebook or following us on X.
