By helping nonprofit partners create more affordable housing
By Jeanene Dunn
Tommy Bickimer has spent his life building homes. Today, he’s focused on building something else: stability for families who dream of owning one.
Growing up, he swept basements, mowed lawns and learned every aspect of the business working alongside his parents, Tom and Mary, who founded Bickimer Homes in 1982.
After earning his construction management degree from Colorado State University and working for a military housing builder, he returned to the family business in 2005.
Today, as CEO of the family-owned custom homebuilding company and a past president of the Home Builders Association of Greater Kansas City (KCHBA), Bickimer is using that experience to help expand access to affordable housing.
Turning Experience into Action
In 2025, he founded the Building Hope Foundation to partner with nonprofit housing organizations by providing construction management, project oversight and technical expertise. The organization’s mission recently received an important boost through a grant from the Home Builders Charitable Foundation.
The funding will help hire the foundation’s first dedicated project manager, allowing Building Hope to expand its work with nonprofit partners. As the foundation’s lead project manager, Bickimer has been balancing responsibilities at Bickimer Homes while overseeing Building Hope’s projects. Bringing on a dedicated project manager will allow the organization to take on more work while providing the oversight needed to control construction costs—one of the many factors that affect the price of a new home.
“Our passion has always been building,” Bickimer said. “I realized the best way I could make a difference was by doing what I know best—helping nonprofit organizations build quality homes for more families.”
A Legacy of Giving
For Bickimer, the Building Hope Foundation is the next chapter in a family tradition of service.
“My parents always believed that if you’re fortunate enough to be successful, you have a responsibility to give back,” he said.
That philosophy inspired the family’s Promise of Learning Foundation, which supports education and early childhood programs.
The family’s commitment to affordable housing includes a longtime relationship with Build WyCo, formerly Community Housing of Wyandotte County.
It also shaped Bickimer’s commitment to KCHBA. After becoming involved with the association in 2005, he served as president in 2022. He also serves on the Habitat for Humanity of Kansas City Board of Directors, where he saw firsthand how builders can help nonprofit organizations accomplish more.
Building Partnerships
The Building Hope Foundation isn’t another affordable housing developer. Instead, it works alongside organizations already serving families in need.
Organizations such as Habitat for Humanity and Build WyCo already have qualified homebuyers in their pipeline and the expertise to prepare families for successful homeownership. The Building Hope Foundation complements that work by providing construction management, project oversight and technical expertise.
“There are a lot of nonprofits doing incredible work,” Bickimer said. “What we bring is construction expertise. We know how to build homes efficiently, manage projects and solve problems. That’s where we can add the most value.”
Hiring a dedicated project manager will allow the foundation to expand those partnerships and take on more projects. Just as important, the additional oversight will help keep construction costs in check, allowing nonprofit partners to stretch their resources further and build more homes for families already waiting in their pipeline.
Building Stability
For Bickimer, affordable housing is about much more than the cost of a home.
“It’s about creating stability,” he said. “When families have a stable place to live, children do better in school, parents have peace of mind and communities become stronger.”
He believes today’s affordability challenges extend well beyond traditionally underserved populations.
“We’re talking about teachers, first responders and young families,” he said. “These are people who work hard every day but are finding it increasingly difficult to afford a home, especially in places like Johnson County.”
Bickimer also believes education is key to overcoming misconceptions about affordable housing.
“People sometimes have misconceptions about affordable housing,” he said. “These are quality homes for people who contribute to our communities every day. The more we educate people, the more they’ll understand the value these neighborhoods bring.”
Looking Ahead
Bickimer hopes the Building Hope Foundation will continue expanding partnerships with organizations such as Habitat for Humanity and Build WyCo while eventually developing affordable housing projects of its own.
He believes solving the housing affordability crisis will require builders, nonprofit organizations, local governments and communities to work together.
“No one organization can solve this alone,” he said. “But if we all contribute what we do best, we can make a real difference.”
For Bickimer, the Building Hope Foundation is about using the skills he’s spent a lifetime developing to help more families find the stability that comes with a place to call home.
“We want to build as many quality homes as we can, help as many families as we can and leave our community better than we found it.”
Photo credit Building Hope Foundation
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