The sod is stacked in the yard, mud surrounding the blue house. But it is home and Shirley Parker and her son Daniel were excited at the Thrivent Builds with Habitat for Humanity house dedication on Sunday.

Parker is ready to make a “last, final move to be home,” she said.

After losing everything in Katrina, waiting for a FEMA trailer and then having that taken away, it’s been a long road home for the Parkers. On the waiting list since 2005, Parker was beaming on Sunday as she took part in a dedication ceremony at Village Church for her family’s new home.

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Her daughter Danielle, a student at Delgado Community College, could not be there because she was working, but she is looking forward to her own room where she can study.

Parker had said earlier that the home will change their lives.

Parker’s sweat equity hours, required by Habitat for Humanity of its homeowners, were completed long before work on her own house started. Instead, members of the Thrivent Financial for Lutherans and volunteers from the Lutheran churches volunteered their time and money to build her house. In all, 2,856.3 volunteer hours and $10,584.42 was raised by the groups.

In addition, Parker received three handmade quilts to make her house and home. All three quilts came from Lutheran groups in Minnesota.

The ceremony, led by Caitlin Scanlan, development director for East St. Tammany Habitat for Humanity, took place at Village Church. The house was dedicated to the memory of George Merrill, a dedicated Habitat volunteer that lost his life when he fell from a rafter of a Habitat House he was helping build.

Scanlan said, “We rely solely on outside funding and workers, and it means a lot to have support form local churches.”

The Rainbow Girls Slidell Assembly No. 4 group built seven bird houses, one in each color of the rainbow, and the Parker family was asked to select one for their home. The girls, ages 11 to 14, were not allowed to work on the actual house because of their ages, so they decided to build a smaller house for the family. The seven Lutheran churches that joined to build the Parkers home are Bethany, Village Church, Hosanna, Lamb of God, Peace Evangelican Lutheran, St. Paul in Hammond and St. Paul in Picayune, Miss. which contributed but could not work.

Thrivent is a nonprofit membership organization that provides financial services and is dedicated to giving back to the community. Terry King, financial consultant for Thrivent, said it is the largest fraternal organization in the world, not only selling insurance, but giving away $400 million per year. They are the largest corporate supporter of Habitat for Humanity.

King said in the last two years, Thrivent has given $5 million to the Gulf Coast area and $17 million since Hurricane Katrina.

Nancy Wood, Thrivent Chapter Specialist, said this is a new beginning, a new life and a gift of love from God, Lutheran churches and Thrivent to the Parker family.