Habitat home marks the beginning of a relationship

NORTH CANAAN — For five years, Jeremy Kaminski drove the 500-mile round trip from Philadelphia to North Canaan at least every other weekend. His love for this area grew almost as fast as his love for hometown girl Ashleigh Bergenty. He finally moved here — and now the couple just got word they have been selected as a partner family with Habitat for Humanity of Northwest Connecticut. Construction is expected to start as soon as weather permits at a site off of Salisbury Road (Route 44). It is almost directly across the street from where Bergenty grew up.“This is the greatest gift we’ve ever gotten in our lives,” Kaminski said. When contacted this past Sunday, he said Ashleigh was out with her mom, Debbie Bergenty, shopping for “furniture we can’t afford.”“She’s not really going to buy anything, but she’s so excited, she had to do something.”For Kaminski, the home they will help build seals his chosen fate to remain here. He likes being just a visitor to “the city” now (his mom still lives in Philly) and being able to enjoy the country full time — and go fishing whenever he wants. The couple’s new home will be adjacent to the Housatonic River.It will be the ninth build for Habitat for Humanity of Northwest Connecticut, and the first in North Canaan. The lot was acquired as part of a subdivision on the riverfront property.The couple who will eventually live there met on the Internet in 2002. About three years ago, Bergenty invited Kaminski to live here with her. She had moved into the apartment above her grandparents’ home on West Main Street. They settled into a happy life, which now includes Hunter James, their English springer spaniel, and guinea pigs Jack and Willy. She is the executive director at Wangum Village, a retirement community in North Canaan. He works at Hamilton Books in Falls Village.Meanwhile, they have been saving and looking for a home to buy. They’ve found that even though it’s supposed to be a buyer’s market sellers are not budging on their asking prices. “And everytime we get some money together for a down payment, something happens, like car repairs. It’s really hard to get ahead,” Kaminski said.A concern for their future is Bergenty’s multiple sclerosis, which may one day affect her mobility. The home will be on one story. That’s a typical Habitat approach — the organization feels it makes for safer builds — but it’s essential for this Habitat partner family. It will have two bedrooms and one large bathroom, with extra wide doorways.“We’re excited that it will be very green,” Kaminski said. “It will be built with things like a tankless hot water heater and radiant heat in the slab.”When visited at their home the next day, Bergenty said that, no, she had not (yet) bought any new furniture.It was she who received the phone call from Habitat, on April 1. When she called Kaminski, he was dubious.“But then I told myself it had to be true,” he said. “I couldn’t believe she would be so cruel as to make a joke out of that.”The word quickly spread among family, who also had to be reassured it wasn’t an April Fool’s Day prank.Bergenty said she is happy they will be living so close to her parents. Her brother, Joshua, has a home a short way down Salisbury Road. She will miss the convenience of walking in the town center — but the trade off is that it will be a quick trip to the river for fishing, and for swims for Hunter.Kaminski said they weren’t told specifically why they were selected, but that they are humbled by the honor. At the same time, he believes they deserve it, because they have the mindset of being community givers. “I know I want to volunteer for Habitat through the future. I am going to make sure building our home is not the end of the relationship.”