Milford chronicle., 1930-05-02
BETTER HOMES
WEEK PROGRAMS
IN $500 COMMUNITIES

Ray Lyman Wilbur, in his radio ad-
dress announcing Better Homes
Week stated that "active home
building helps to maintain employ
ment and good business as well as
to enable us to live in better homes" +"
He further called attention to the
fact that more than $500 communi-
ties, averaging more than two for
every county in the United States,
were engaged this week in demon
stration the many ways in which
homes of every type can be improv-
ed, and sanitary, wholesome and at
tractive conditions of home life
could be made available to all.
DR.. Wilbur is President of Better
Homes in America and his talk
marked the launching of the ninth
nationwide observance of Better
Homes Week.
zone of the chief concerns of
many of the % or 29 million famil-
les in the United States is to have a
good home. No doubt in this radio
audience there are some who are
fully satisfied but nevertheless l
hope that you all may be interested
in knowing something of what the
more than $500 local better homes
committees throughout the country
are planning to do during Better
Homes Week, which starts today.
Although there are more Better
Homes Committees in some regions
than in others, there are on an av-
erage two for each of the 3,O73
counties, with about five hundred to
spare. The activities are not confin-
ed to cities and towns, nor even to
populous rural districts, but extend
into thinly settled areas.
"Many who are accustomed to con
veniences which are termed roots"
of the house, only dimply appreciate
the burden of carrying water by
hand, of tending oil lamps, or try
ing to keep warm in winter without
modern heating equipment, or the
hardships of living in an isolated
spot where there is no telephone nor
even a near neighbor. They do not
stop to realize that millions of our
families are still without many or
all of the every day conveniences to
which they themselves are accus-
toned.
Everyone of use who honestly
sets about improving his own house,
or who starts to buy or build
house, soon realizes that it would
take a life time to become cOmpe-
tent to make the best possible de-
cisions in regard to every feature IN
the house. By the time we master
the last features, we may find that
what we had learned about the first
phases had become out of date.
Since this is a practical world, we
have to get ahead with what know
ledge and experience we can ac-
quire in a comparatively short time.
"That is Just where Better Homes
in America comes into the picture.
The whole movement is built around
the local Better Homes Committee,
of which more than $500 have been
organized and are carrying out Bet
ter Homes Week Programs in their
local communities this year.
"The Better Homes Committees
are instructed to get away as far as
possible from the type of so called
"model home" which is fitted out the
way most of us would like to nave
it we did not count the cost.
"The Better Homes Committees
start out by fixing limit of eXpen-
ditures within the range of family
of small income, and then see if they
can build, furnish and equip house
to the best of their ability within the
limit set. By working together in
sroun. the committee members, VINO
are often specialists in particular
fields. such as interior decorating
furniture, kitchen arrangement, Ia
Dor saving appliances, floor cover
ings and so on, are able to do DeI-
ter Job than any one person couIu
reasonably be expected to 90 IN
relatively short time. There is the
universal testimony that a visit TO
\. a good demonstration house mas a
value to most people that is Tar be-
yond what they could gain from
reading or listening to lectures lot
a much greater time.
"Great credit is due the local COM
mittees for the steady Improvement
in demonstration houses from year
to wear. They seem to profit from
Itheir own experience and obtain bet
fer and better results for what they
spend each year as they unoerIaAe
the task again.
"The committees have shown re-
markable resourcefulness IN meet
inc local conditions. Negro cabin
demonstrations in some southern
Communities have cost only few
bTndred dollars each and have Deen
eouinped with furniture made from
scran materials by students in woou
working classes. .. o1ios
"Retter Homes in America relles
almost wholly on volunteer local
committees for carrying out lts ac-
tivities. and the yin turn rely Oh
volnnteer assistance from local Dus-
inose men. civic associations, rellgl-
ous groups, and educational authOr
ities as well as the local othclaIs'
"At the other end, the moVeneno
is sponsored by more than a scoIe
- AGENCIES such as the Child HeaIth
Xssociation and various organlza-
+ions renresenting business and pro-
fassionai groups, civic associations
ond the like, as well as several Oa
tba government departments. All OIL
these have an interest in one or
more phase of the home: Do44or
"The small central staff Of Better
Homes in America in washington
n o5'T c. serves s as a clearing house oG for
information and assistance between
tbesa @ national agencies and the To-
oaI 'c Committees. It thus occupies a
Kew nosition of service to the 61ggest
ooo,,pation ny in the country, that OF