A 60-year-old church in Leroy was in disrepair and leaked whenever it rained. It is getting a new roof.

Last fall, Mission Waco, which cares for the area’s homeless, added a new room at its homeless women’s shelter that can sleep six more people. Its alcohol and drug rehabilitation men’s facility is getting a new roof and will be renovated.

And it’s all thanks to some local contractors who recently started a nonprofit construction company that is helping other nonprofits.

Mannaworks founders Roy Karr (left) and Kevin Diserens (center) with operations manager Cliff Harris outside a drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility they are renovating for Mission Waco.
Rod Aydelotte photo

The Christian-based Waco organization, Mannaworks, is like manna from heaven for some groups that otherwise could not afford costly construction repairs and renovations.

But its founders, Roy Karr and Kevin Diserens, are just grateful for the opportunity to give back to the community using the skills and contacts they have gathered in two decades as general contractors in Central Texas.

Think of them as “construction missionaries,” Karr said.

“We’re saved by grace but we’re saved for something, and we have a purpose and that’s to love others and teach others and help others — and that’s the backbone of Mannaworks,” he said. “The whole idea behind Mannaworks is for us to come in and help the nonprofit by cutting their repair and remodel costs in half. We don’t charge the typical commission of what a general contractor would.”

The organization relies on area churches, civic organizations, students seeking community service hours and thoughtful neighbors to volunteer their time, dollars and sweat. They hire professional subcontractors to do some of the detailed labor, but they also rely on homemakers, professors, minis-ters and businessmen to help with administrative work, scheduling and some construction. With relatively few labor costs, most projects cost half what they would otherwise.

Take the Leroy church, for instance. James Chapel Baptist Church is one of the oldest African-American churches in McLennan County, but it was practically unusable. Foundation problems caused it to lean to one side, which buckled the roof. Damage to the roof, walls and windows let rain inside. The church smelled dank and was unbearably hot in summer and cold in winter.

James Chapel Baptist Church in Leroy is scheduled to have its roof repaired with the help of Mannaworks.
Cliff Harris photo

Karr, Diserens and a host of volunteers were planning to begin work on the roof of the 3,000-square-foot church in January after professionals repaired the foundation.

“They were still using the place for worship, but they were in danger of losing the building if the roof continued to deteriorate,” said Cliff Harris, Mannaworks operations manager. 

Stella Williams, James Chapel secretary, said Mannaworks has been a blessing to the 13-member congregation.

“We are very thankful that God put us in touch with these people,” Williams said, adding that the church otherwise could not have afforded the repairs.

Aside from negotiating with subcontractors for the lowest prices, Karr and Diserens cut their profit margins to the 5-10 percent range, instead of the typical 20-25 percent range. That money helps pay for gasoline to get to jobs and their electric bill, but not much more.

Jimmy Dorrell, executive director of Mission Waco, said he estimates renovation to the men’s drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility, aptly named Manna House, normally would have cost $50,000. With Mannaworks, the bill was $25,000. 

Even more important, Dorrell said, is that Mannaworks brought in new volunteers who got to experience first-hand the plight of the homeless.

“They are volunteer brokers for people who want to help,” Dorrell said. “It’s much bigger than them just doing construction work.”

And that’s exactly what Karr and Diserens strive for — bringing others into service to help those who need it most.

“If we can get 30 people to go to inner-city Waco to help build homeless shelters and we can change their hearts to see that God created us all equal, then who knows how many more hearts they can change by telling people about their experience,” Karr said.

Before Mannaworks, Karr and Diserens each had thriving general contracting businesses in town. But they felt something was missing in their lives, and they both felt a tug.

They had enjoyed the few weeks they spent each of the past eight years traveling to Mexico to help build homes with their church, Harris Creek Baptist. But they both said they wished they could do similar work locally.

Something was telling them to go another path.

Waco has many nonprofits in buildings that need repairs, Karr said. “Most nonprofits are spending as much money as they can to pay their staff to help people. And they are not taking care of their facilities.” he said.

Cliff Harris (left) and Kevin Diserens work on repairing the railing to stairs of the Manna House, which is run by Mission Waco
Rod Aydelotte photo

When Karr first spoke to his wife, Sarah, last April about the direction he and Diserens were leaning, she embraced the idea wholeheartedly. So did Diserens’ wife, Kelli.

“She said we should have done this sooner,” Karr said. “We’re not making as much money, that’s true, but that’s where the ministry and stepping out on faith comes in. We believe God has called us to do this and that God will provide for us and he already has.”

On Oct. 22, the group held a kickoff banquet at a downtown Waco hotel. The week before the event, they thought maybe a few dozen folks would show up. But they were overwhelmed when more than 200 came. Many filled out volunteer cards indicating a willingness to help. Some gave money. One person even cashed in a 401(k) account and gave it to Mannaworks to use for its start-up.

Richard Karr, Roy’s uncle and owner of Richard Karr Motors, gave them free office space at the former Rountree Oldsmobile Cadillac building on Franklin Avenue.

Many other contractors in town have donated materials. Several professionals, such as Brian Wenzel of State Farm Insurance and the Scanes Routh & James law firm, have offered support.

And every day they get two to three calls from those needing construction help.

“They’ve come through in a big way for us,” Dorrell said. “And they’ve done it with a spirit of cooperation that ‘we’re here to serve.’ That’s what Christian nonprofits are about. It’s not competitive. And they prove that we’re all on the same team.”