Second Chance Housing: Steel-framed Home Construction and Reconstruction

Second Chance Housing is fortunate to have a talented and dedicated staff of professionals to help them carry out their goals of rebuilding communities.


	Carl Blackstone TEAM MEMBER email Carl A. Blackstone is a retired Engineer Officer from the Connecticut Army National Guard. After serving 22 years he retired as a Major in 1996. During his service with 242^nd Engineer Battalion, 192^nd Engineer Battalion and Director of Logistics Office in the State Headquarters, Carl’s positions included Operations Officer, Engineer Equipment Maintenance Officer and Command Engineer Officer. The positions required supervision of over 750 men and 400 pieces of Engineer Equipment. Since October 1996, Carl has been a Real Estate Agent and in May 2001 Carl acquired his Real Estate Broker’s License and started Blackstone Realty Group, LLC. In Aug 2004, Carl started an association with Tri-Steel Homes of Denton, TX. After investing in Tri-Steel Homes as a Regional Area Distributor, Carl started a construction company called White Star Construction to construct Tri-Steel Homes. After a year and a half Carl was appointed to Tri-Steel Homes as a Vice President of Special Projects. From the experience of constructing the Tri-Steel Homes, Carl developed the Home in a Box Construction Package program. In December of 2007, Carl A. Blackstone and Richard E. Blake combine both of their experiences in Real Estate and Construction backgrounds to form Second Chance Housing, LLC. This new company offers one stop shopping for Real Estate Brokerage, Construction Management, and Real Estate Development. Second Chance Housing is currently working with Assisting Hand to bring affordable housing to the Katrina Disaster Area.

	Richard Blake TEAM MEMBER email Richard E. Blake served with the Connecticut State Police (CSP) Department for 26 years and retired in 1989. His experience ranges from community issues to specialized units with the CSP. The last 15 years with the CSP Richard commanded the Governor Warrant’s Unit acquiring extensive experience with the Governor’s Office and Judicial Courts System within the State of Connecticut. He was a member of National Extradition Officials Association. Richard is a retired Engineer Officer from the Connecticut Army National Guard. He served 34 years retiring as a Colonel in 1995. Richard’s career started as an enlisted soldier to Sergeant. Richard graduated from the US Army Officer Candidate School at Ft Benning, GA. During is tenure Richard served with 192^nd Engineer Battalion, Post Commander of the State Military Reservation in CT and Adjutant General’s Staff in the State Headquarters. Richard’s positions included Company and Battalion Commander, Post Commander, Facilities Engineer and the State Personnel Officer (G-1). These positions required supervision of 4,100 men and women. In December of 2007, Carl Blackstone and Richard Blake combined both of their experiences in Real Estate and Construction backgrounds and created Second Chance Housing, LLC. This new company offers one stop shopping for Real Estate Brokerage, Construction Management and Real Estate Development. Second Chance Housing is currently working with Assisting Hand to bring affordable housing to the Katrina Disaster Area. Richard has been married for 18 years and resides in Woodstock, Connecticut and New Orleans, LA. Richard and his wife enjoy the Quiet Corner of Northeastern Connecticut.

	Sarah Van Dyke-Ewan Director of Marketing email Sarah Van Dyke-Ewan has been in the graphic design and website design field for over 15 years and is the owner of Sunset Graphics, an established design firm based in Connecticut. Her work is respected throughout the country, where she is considered a pioneer in technology-driven marketing. Sarah’s long list of clients include top companies in construction, publishing, healthcare, retail, agriculture, entertainment, recreation, sports, education, finance and the nonprofit sector. She has designed and developed hundreds of web sites, and has extensive experience in print design and production. Her portfolio of work also includes corporate logos, high-end brochures, 3D point-of-purchase displays, glossy magazines, catalogs, directories, office forms and practically every imaginable type of ink-on-paper product. Before founding Sunset Graphics in 1995, Sarah was a creative director and design specialist at several prominent firms in Connecticut. A graduate of the University of Connecticut with a degree in marketing, Sarah also regularly attends conferences and workshops to keep abreast of the latest design and production trends and technologies. Sarah has been married for 11 years, has two sons, and lives in Southeastern Connecticut.

	Daina K. McClain Manager, Plant Operations email