The Augusta Newcomers Club presented a $22,500 check to the Drumgoole Family Initiative to build tiny homes for young adults transitioning out of foster care.
The check was presented at the club’s season-end luncheon on May 16.
The Newcomers check comes on the heels of a $18,000 donation by Chick Fil A made earlier this year.
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Communications Director Cheryl Schuback says the members of the Newcomers organization pick one charity per year to support.
“We are excited to support this worthwhile initiative and it’s kind of amazing that our small group was able to raise that much money,” Schuback said.
Started by Army veteran retiree Jackson Drumgoole II, the Drumgoole Family Initiative assists young adults transitioning out of foster care and is planning the tiny home village in the midtown Augusta area.
Recently, the Augusta Commission approved the needed rezoning for the tiny home development to be placed on a former city park on Merry Street.
Drumgoole’s plan is to construct an initial village of 10 single-story tiny homes called the Bridge Builder Community. It’s modeled on the PIVOT tiny home neighborhood in Oklahoma City, where kids get to choose from a few different configurations.
Individual units with approximately 320 square feet seem the best fit, with an estimated price of $60,000-$90,000 per unit, he said.
Children are released from foster care at age 18 and many find the transition difficult, with an alarming amount of the former foster population becoming homeless, according to Drumgoole.
“We want to change the face of homelessness, we are already working with the local high schools to identify at-risk kids that may qualify for a home once they reach 18,” Drumgoole said.
Now that the legal hurdles are out of the way, Drumgoole plans to break ground on his first tiny home village by the end of the year.
Meanwhile, Augusta Newcomers, which is a 53 year-old social club open to all residents of the CSRA, has chosen Rise Augusta, an education center for children living in poverty, as next year’s grant recipient.
Scott Hudson is the Senior Investigative Reporter and Editorial Page Editor for The Augusta Press. Reach him at scott@theaugustapress.com
