KNOTT COUNTY, Ky. (WYMT) - A group of volunteers from Maryland are back in Eastern Kentucky, working against the clock to frame, wrap, and roof three homes. The homes in the Chestnut Ridge community will be for flood survivors.

The effort is part of a “Blitz Build” led by DreamBuilders , a faith-based volunteer group. The three homes will be built in just five days. For this trip they brought 36 people ranging in age from 15 to 74. Many of them are teenagers picking up tools for the very first time.

This story will air live on Mountain News at 6 p.m.

“I think what you get out of it is so much more than what you put in,” said 15-year-old volunteer Anna Gerdes, who’s on her third trip with DreamBuilders. “You learn so many life skills. Everyone’s open to teaching you… it’s just a really warm experience. You feel very fulfilled doing it.”

The group has partnered with the Housing Development Alliance for the third year in a row, continuing its work to help Eastern Kentucky families who lost everything in the July 2022 flood, and now the February 2025 flood.

“One of the focuses of DreamBuilders is teenagers,” said team leader John McBeth. “We try to bring high school kids because in our area in Maryland, the kids don’t get exposure to this kind of thing as they’re growing up. We want them to get the skills for construction, and also to be exposed to people who have suffered from some disaster.”

According to HDA, two of the three homes are already sold to flood survivors. The third will soon be sold to a family in need.

“We’re coming up on the third year anniversary of the flood. We just had another flood back in February,” said Mindy Miller, Director of Development and Communications for HDA. “People here still need help. And we’re thankful to have Dream Builders here for the people of Eastern Kentucky.”

Cousins Lucy and Molly Luman, both 15, said they were nervous at first, but are already seeing how meaningful their work is.

“It’s really important because it’s life-changing for people,” Lucy said. “They lost their homes, all their stuff… now they get to move back into a new home and hopefully feel the same love they did before the flood.”

“It’s been really nice to learn different tools,” Molly added. “I definitely didn’t know anything about construction going into this, so it’s been really cool to figure everything out.”

McBeth said what the teens gain from the experience goes far beyond building skills.

“Some of them don’t know how to hold a hammer at the beginning of the week,” he said. “But by the end of the week, they’re experts.”

DreamBuilders plans to complete all three homes by the end of the week. The group said they hope to return to Eastern Kentucky again next year to continue helping families rebuild.