A single mother. A dream of a branded truck. A group of volunteers with a heart for vulnerable homeowners… building blocks of a small, church-sponsored ministry built on the shoulders of prayer warriors and faithful warriors.
Faithful people like Neale Hightower. His Home Repairs journey began over two decades ago when he and his wife, Mary, were exploring volunteering opportunities through Perimeter Church.
While Neale and Mary scrolled through Perimeter’s website, Mary pointed out Home Repairs Ministries, which, at the time, was a volunteer-run ministry tackling small repair projects.
“Home Repairs Ministries struck a chord in me because my dad did a lot of projects for widows in the church,” Neale explained. “I [thought about] people I’d known over the years who had problems — widows, single moms or people with disabilities. People with some kind of home repair need that they couldn’t take care of.”
It was an easy decision for Neale to volunteer. In 2005, Neale joined Home Repairs Ministries then quickly began leading it. During that time, he helped with multiple projects funded by the ministry’s $3,000 annual budget.
Then in the summer, Neale heard about Marjorie.
Marjorie had been abandoned by her husband, leaving her to raise her five children alone. She overcame homelessness and found a job at a local hospital to support herself and her children.
“The Lord had given her a house, but the house was in terrible shape,” Neale shared. “A lot of shoddy work had been done by the previous owners. It had problem after problem after problem that were overwhelming,” he said.
Neale looked at the ministry’s budget and at the critical repairs Marjorie needed on her home. He felt the Lord calling Home Repairs Ministries to help, even with their limited funds.
In October of 2005, 30 volunteers began work on Marjorie’s home.
“We ripped out everything: the master bedroom, her bathroom, her kitchen. Then we had to put it back together with a $3,000 budget,” Neale said.
“But we needed more funding. We needed a framework to fundraise for the resources to help someone like her.”
As Neale prayed for Marjorie’s project, he felt that someone should lead Home Repairs Ministries to take a big step. But he had two children, one on the way and a job he enjoyed.
“I said, ‘Lord, if you want me to do this, it’s going to be a problem because I have a job. But I guess if I don’t have a job, I could do this.”
About a week later, the company Neale worked for informed him that he was losing his job due to its financial struggles.
Through that unexpected news, God opened the door for Neale to lead Home Repairs Ministries forward. In December of 2005, Neale stepped through the door, and the next year Home Repairs Ministries became an official 501(c)(3) nonprofit with Neale serving as the first executive director.
While changes went on behind the scenes, Marjorie’s repair project stretched on.
“People donated supplies. Contractors donated their time. We fixed the roof and added a drainage ditch. We redid the master bedroom and bathroom and the kitchen. We redid her plumbing. It took us about a year to finish everything.”
Throughout the home repair, Neale saw the hands and feet of Jesus in action, especially through one volunteer: Regan Walters.
“After we had torn everything apart [in Marjorie’s home], Regan came to look at the plumbing problem. Sewage was coming out of the pipe and dumping into a room. It was absolutely nasty,” Neale remembers.
Regan found a root ball that had grown into the pipe, blocking the flow of sewage and causing it to back up into the room downstairs.
“He was kneeling down, pulling out the root ball, and he had sewage all over him. Marjorie was standing there, and she was praising God for the root ball coming out,” he said.
“The image that came to my mind wasn’t that Regan was cleaning out the sewer line. He was washing feet [like Jesus in John 13].”
While Home Repairs’ volunteers were serving Marjorie, she faithfully prayed that the Lord would bless and grow the ministry.
While she prayed, God gave her a vision of his provision: a branded Home Repairs Ministries truck.
Well before he saw this vision of Marjorie’s become a reality, as Neale witnessed volunteers’ sacrificial service and Marjorie’s committed prayers, he knew exactly what he wanted this young nonprofit to become — a tangible example of God’s love for those who are hurting.
Twenty years later, Neale has seen the ministry grow to repair hearts and homes for hundreds of homeowners in North Georgia. He serves now as a board member emeritus.
“I stay involved because I believe in the need. I believe in the opportunity to meet people where they are and show them the kingdom of God and the love of God,” he shared.
“We live in a time that’s as divided as I’ve ever seen in my life, but sacrificial service bridges all of that instantly.”
As Home Repairs Ministries celebrates its 20th anniversary, Neale is praising God for how He’s guided and grown the ministry.
“The 20th anniversary year is really about celebrating God’s goodness. I’m seeing a vision we had in the early days come to fruition in a way I could never have imagined. We’re celebrating His goodness and provision and the people He’s brought over the years.”
One specific way Neale’s seen God provide? Through the very first Home Repairs Ministries branded truck, made possible in 2025 by a Gwinnett County grant.
Neale texted Marjorie to tell her that, after all these years, her prayers had been answered.
She responded: “‘Glory be to God. And yes, that’s the truck I saw.’”
Built on the foundation of prayer and service, Home Repairs Ministries has served hundreds of homeowners since it became an official nonprofit in 2006. Over the next 20 years, Neale dreams of even more homes repaired and hearts touched.
“My dream is that we continue to be the people of God, serving and touching lives in a special way,” he said.
“We’re here to grow the kingdom using the vehicle of repairing people’s homes.”
