Kim "peck" Peckenpaugh
We continue our series of board member interviews celebrating the 30th year of Habitat for Humanity of Northwest Tennessee. This week we will highlight Mr. Kim Peckenpaugh, best known simply as “Peck”.
He is married to Patsy Bowen Peckenpaugh and has two daughters, Catybeth Peckenpaugh French and Mary Evelyn Peckenpaugh Ramsey. He also has two grandchildren, Emma French, and River Ramsey. He is a member of First Baptist Church of Dyersburg and has served on many committees and boards of all phases in his profession and for his community. Peck has been in the funeral industry for over 42 years. He is a licensed funeral director/embalmer. He started his career at Curry Funeral Home in 1981. He is a sales consultant for Clark Grove Vault Company, for whom he has traveled all over Kentucky and Tennessee since 1990. He also serves as a Dyer County Commissioner representing District J. He has served as a Commissioner since 2014.
Many of Habitat’s volunteers and board members recognize that providing affordable housing benefits the entire community. Self-reliance is developed, which makes our communities stronger. I asked Peck when he first began volunteering for Habitat. He stated, “David Tinkle, a Habitat Board member, invited me to join in 2005. I wanted to help families create a better life for their kids and own their own homes.”
The notion that when individuals are given a chance to help create something of their own establishes in them a sense of belonging and responsibility is a common thread that weaves together many of Habitat’s volunteers.
Peck recalls the tornadoes of 2006 as one of the most memorable moments during his time volunteering. Habitat for Humanity of Northwest TN would build two homes at once during this time. The afternoon of April 2nd into the overnight hours of April 3rd saw 5 F3 tornadoes form across the Midsouth. There was catastrophic damage and, sadly, loss of life. Over 1,200 buildings and homes were destroyed throughout the Missouri Bootheel, eastern Arkansas, and Northwest TN. Habitat was there to help build safe homes during such a tragic time for our community.
Peck continues, “Habitat for Humanity allows families to own a house, pay taxes, insurance and improve their quality of life. One of the unique aspects of Habitat’s selection process is that each family is selected at the local level. When selecting a family, we look at the level of need, the willingness to work alongside volunteers, and the ability to pay an affordable mortgage. Habitat homeowners are also required to put in “sweat equity” hours. They can fulfill these by working with volunteers to help build or renovate the home they will live in. They can also help at their local Habitat office. Another great benefit of being a Habitat homeowner is that they attend financial education courses and budget classes.”
Peck commented on how things have changed with Habitat’s mortgage process over the last 30 years. He said, “Habitat must operate under the same regulations as banks operate under when making loans. These regulations do make it harder to put families in homes unlike the way we were able to do in the past through Habitat’s program. Things that used to be easy to help deserving families improve their lives are now more complicated because of these regulations.”
We are so thankful for people like Peck that give their time and talents to help improve the lives around them.
