ROCKPORT — Saturday night was a time for celebrating the continued good works of Midcoast Habitat for Humanity, which will complete construction of its 24th home at the end of September.

Midcoast Habitat staff, board members, volunteers and guests welcomed special guest Steve Thomas to the Tool Box Bash Sept. 22, a fundraiser for the local Habitat chapter and its ReStore, which sells new and used donated building materials, appliances and furniture to the general public. That store opened one year ago, on Route 90 in Rockport. Following a 14-year on-air television career with This Old House, which launched on WGBH Boston in 1979, Thomas recently joined Habitat for Humanity International.

Thomas hosted the multi-Emmy award winning home renovation series from 1989, when he took over for series premier host Bob Vila, through 2003. In 1998, Thomas won a national Emmy award for Outstanding Service Show Host. In addition to renovating and reconstructing homes throughout New England each year, Thomas and the This Old House crew undertook projects in Santa Fe, N.M.; New Orleans, La.; Miami, Fla.; Honolulu, Hawaii;, Napa Valley, Calif.; Savannah, Geo.; Tucson, Ariz.; and London, England, among other locales.

Thomas also hosted Renovation Nation, a green homebuilding show on the Planet Green cable channel, beginning in 2008.

Saturday night in Rockport, under a tent at the MHFH's Restore on Route 90, Thomas talked about his past experiences, the Habitat mission and how he came to get involved.

Thomas became a Habitat representative and joined as a volunteer in October 2011. He and wife are now fulltime Maine residents, after living in Massachusetts, and make their home off Port Clyde.

In Kenya, a year ago, Thomas said he met people who lost everything, who were driven out of their homes and who, "did unspeakable things to each other."

But he also saw the need people had for housing, how having a home was something that helped stabilize them, and gave them back their sense of community. That by working together, they could accomplish great things, quickly and efficiently, with some guidance and encouragement.

The Kenyans were each set up on a piece of land, and everyone received a parcel through a simple lottery system. They were also told that Habitat would help them build on the land.

"We were building 300-square-foot homes, and though they were tiny homes, they changed people's lives," said Thomas. "It transformed them. It transformed these people's lives, and it changed my view of how you stabilize people around the world."

Thomas said you can't stabilize the world if people are living in slums.

"When I grew up, we lived in a time when you could do better each year," said Thomas. "It's not the same now. You can have something one year, like a home and it can be gone the next."

After working in Kenya and seeing Habitat in action over the years, Thomas said: "I realized I could leverage my time as a builder. I learned you will do more with less time and less money working with Habitat, and we like that as Mainers."

But Habitat is not a give-away program, Thomas said. Families chosen for Habitat homes must give back, and figure out how to give at least 500 hours to help with someone else's home before they can qualify for their own home.

"People are vested in Habitat with this model," said Thomas. "And there is a lot of support to help people stay in their Habitat houses."

When he approached Habitat International CEO Jonathan Reckford about joining, Reckford told Thomas they couldn't pay him.

"I didn't care about pay," said Thomas. "I wanted to give back."

"People in Maine are incredibly resourceful, and it's neighbors helping neighbors," said Thomas. "Once you get that, this is what community is all about."

Thomas said that Habitat can leverage "neighborliness" across the world.

"In Kenya, working there providing homes from the most basic of materials and whole communities, it changed my concept of building," said Thomas.

Since joining the organization, Thomas just finished participating in the Builders Blitz, which saw the construction of 200 homes in one week.

He said the Blitz adds "capacity" by assembling professional builder volunteers to build as many homes as possible in one week. It's a challenge that everyone gets really excited about and Thomas said they do the Blitz every two years.

"I get back more than I put in, and there are very few endeavors where that occurs," said Thomas. "If you are not involved with Habitat, I encourage you to as it’s a worldwide organization that does make a difference."

In addition to assisting with actual building projects, Thomas said his main awareness focus is on ReStores, which are helping Habitats nationwide become self-sustaining and raise money to build more homes.

Midcoast Habitat's ReStore, across from Tolman Pond Market, opened its doors Sept. 17, 2011. The sale of new and used building materials, appliances and furniture not only helps fund more Habitat building projects, it keeps items that can be recycled out of landfills and provides another means for individuals, organizations and companies to donate.

The ReStore is run and organized by volunteers, under the direction of Midcoast Habitat Executive Director Tia Anderson. The volunteers also coordinate donation pick-up and help with office work, among other tasks.

"The ReStore offers a powerful way to fund a part of Habitat's work, and they have kept 200 million tons of stuff out of landfills," said Thomas. "Contractors don't want to throw stuff away, and most guys on a job site don't take it home, so when there is a kitchen to deconstruct, there are so many bits and pieces that can be brought to a ReStore for someone else to use. It makes everyone feel better in the end."

Maine now has five ReStores, and volunteers are needed on an ongoing basis to help with sales, merchandise display, pricing, donation pickup and other tasks. For more information, email tia@midcoasthabitat.org or call 236-6123.