Building a Healthy Home with Hemp

A Michigan woman’s health crisis sparks an innovative healthy housing initiative using hempcrete construction

When Jesse Decker got sick at age 12, she had no idea it would take five years just to get a diagnosis—and nearly two decades to find a place she could safely call home. Now, thanks to a collaboration between Hemp for Humanity (H4H), Wills-Begley Architecture, and iHemp Michigan, Jesse’s story is becoming a blueprint for accessible, healthy housing built with hemp-based materials.

The June 15, 2023 episode of the iHemp Hour introduced viewers to the Canary Homes project—an ambitious initiative to construct a 1,010 square foot healthy home for Jesse in Hastings, Michigan, while developing replicable models for others suffering from multiple chemical sensitivities and related conditions.

Jesse’s Journey: A Medical Odyssey

Jesse’s health challenges read like a medical textbook—one that most doctors couldn’t decipher for years. At 12, what seemed like a simple stomach flu spiraled into a cascade of debilitating symptoms that forced her to drop out of high school midway through her freshman year.

“I was a straight-A student in band and choir, a lot of extracurricular activities with a really thriving social life. That all was completely taken away from me when I dropped out and got sick.”

After five years of specialists telling her “it’s all in your head,” Jesse finally received a diagnosis at age 17: Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME)—a neuroendocrine immune disorder that affects virtually every system in the body. The condition left her with three chronic viruses her compromised immune system simply cannot fight off.

The Diagnosis List Grew

The medical challenges didn’t stop there. Jesse has since been diagnosed with:

• Craniocervical instability requiring spinal fusion surgery
• Chiari malformation causing brain tissue to extend through the skull
• Tethered spinal cord requiring surgical intervention
• Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (hEDS)—a collagen disorder affecting bones, skin, ligaments, and muscles
• Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS)—causing severe reactions to mold, chemicals, and electromagnetic fields

“My mast cells see everything as a threat. I am extremely sensitive to mold to the point that my body basically shuts down when I come into contact with it for five minutes.”

Why Traditional Housing Isn’t an Option

Jesse’s sensitivity extends far beyond typical allergies. A simple visit to her doctor’s newly constructed office—even wearing two N95 masks—left her sicker than she’d been in years.

“I was there for an hour, and I was the sickest I have ever been in like years—just from being in a room, not necessarily even breathing stuff in because I had two masks on.”

Traditional building materials—vinyl flooring, paint adhesives, and standard construction chemicals—create a toxic environment for someone with MCAS. Living in a nearly 200-year-old home with mold, dust, and unshielded electrical wiring made her progressively sicker.

Her options? Nearly non-existent. Old homes harbor mold and contaminants. New construction off-gasses chemicals that trigger severe reactions. And on disability income, affordable healthy housing simply doesn’t exist.

Enter Hempcrete: The Healthy Building Solution

This is where hemp changes everything.

Cody Ley, founder of Hemp for Humanity, explained why hempcrete—a bio-composite made from hemp hurd (the woody inner core of the hemp stalk), lime, and water—is ideal for chemical sensitivity sufferers:

“Hempcrete is an all-natural material. It doesn’t have the same VOCs that you would find in a lot of conventional building materials. Those volatile organic compounds are what would be triggering Jesse’s sensitivities.”

Key Benefits of Hempcrete for Healthy Homes:

Property	Benefit for Sensitive Individuals
Zero VOCs	No off-gassing of toxic chemicals
Mold resistant	Critical for mold allergy sufferers
Pest proof	No need for chemical treatments
Sound insulating	Reduces sensory overwhelm
Thermal performance	Maintains stable, healthy environment
Natural materials	No synthetic compounds

The Canary Homes Project: More Than One House

Ellis Wills-Begley of Wills-Begley Architecture has been leading the design work, creating 3D models and working through site-specific requirements. But this project goes beyond standard green building—it incorporates building biology principles that consider factors most architects never address.

“Even though myself would go in and say this is an ideal place, there’s a lot more to it. We’ve brought in building biologists who have been working to perform on-site and off-site analysis looking into electromagnetic radiation, electromagnetic fields—like power grids and ley lines.”

Beyond Materials: A Holistic Approach

The Canary Homes project addresses:

• Electromagnetic sensitivity: Shielded wiring and careful electrical design
• Lighting considerations: Incandescent lighting instead of LED (which emits frequencies that affect Jesse)
• Site selection: Analysis of regional electromagnetic conditions
• Material auditing: Every component tested against emission standards
• Ventilation planning: Extended cure times before occupancy

Ellis referenced “Prescriptions for a Healthy Home” (4th edition) as a key resource guiding their specifications, noting that the latest edition specifically addresses electromagnetic radiation concerns.

The Numbers: What It Takes to Build Safe

The Canary Homes project has launched with clear goals:

Project Detail	Specification
📐 Square footage	1,010 sq ft (1,100 with deck)
💰 Fundraising goal	$250,000
📍 Location	Near Hastings, Michigan
⏱️ Timeline	9-12 months from groundbreaking
🌱 Hemp needed	Approximately 3 acres of fiber

The team is exploring prefabricated panel construction—manufacturing hempcrete blocks off-site to allow proper curing (approximately 30 days) before assembly. This approach also addresses Michigan’s seasonal construction challenges.

“Working indoors, especially in Michigan, can be a much more positive working environment,” Ellis noted. “Labor is a huge construction industry problem. Prefabrication has shown to be a solution.”

The Bigger Picture: Millions Could Benefit

When asked about the prevalence of these conditions, Lori Decker (Jesse’s mother) shared sobering statistics:

“Before the pandemic, there were about 1.5 million people with ME in the United States. Now they’re estimating about seven million. Worldwide, somewhere around 30 percent of the people who have had COVID will have long COVID and potentially ME.”

The connection to Long COVID makes this project remarkably timely. What was once considered a rare condition now affects millions who struggle to find housing that won’t make them sicker.

How to Support the Canary Homes Project

Hemp for Humanity has launched fundraising for this inaugural project:

🌐 Website: h4h.earth/canary-homes 💚 GoFundMe: Available through the website 📧 Corporate sponsorships: Contact H4H for sponsorship packages

Ways to contribute:

• Financial donations through GoFundMe
• In-kind material donations
• Volunteer labor (workshops will be announced)
• Professional expertise in healthy building practices

“This is a house for me, but it’s the first step. After this, we don’t plan on stopping. We want to bring this kind of safe housing to as many people as possible.” — Jesse Decker

Farm Bill Advocacy: Removing Barriers for Healthy Building

Dave Crabill highlighted the irony of current hemp regulations: building Jesse’s healthy home requires approximately three acres of hemp fiber—yet farmers must undergo DEA fingerprinting and background checks just to grow this beneficial crop.

iHemp Michigan is working with a coalition of 10+ industry organizations on Farm Bill initiatives, including the Industrial Hemp Exemption Act, which would create a regulatory carve-out for fiber and grain hemp production.

“The farmers are at a disadvantage to grow this crop because they have to go through DEA, get fingerprinted and background checks… to build this house. We’re still in that Reefer Madness stage.”

Key Farm Bill priorities include:

• Exempting fiber and grain hemp from burdensome THC testing
• Establishing federal seed banks
• Allowing hemp ingredients in animal feed
• Designating hemp as a specialty crop for USDA program access

A Note on Healthy Alternatives

The episode also touched on healthier material alternatives already available. HempWood flooring, manufactured in Kentucky at a “totally green facility,” offers a sustainable alternative to vinyl and laminate flooring—products recently scrutinized for forced labor concerns and toxic production processes.

“A lot of these materials you’re talking about, the off-gassing—even the healthy person, it’s bad for. Your house is poisoning you.” — Dave Crabill

More Hemp Building Opportunities

For those interested in hands-on experience:

📅 FiberFort Workshop – Fennville, Michigan A unique project combining recycled tires with hemp hurd and hempcrete construction. Contact iHemp Michigan for details.

What’s Next

The Canary Homes team has received encouraging support from local building departments and township officials for property division and permitting. Next steps include:

1. Finalizing site permits (septic, land use, building)
2. Beginning prefabricated panel production
3. Hosting educational workshops during construction
4. Documenting the process for replication

As Ellis noted:

“Providing housing for one person is providing housing. That’s the goal I’m working towards. Little by little, those opportunities will scale and the impacts will scale.”

Recipe of the Week: Maryland Crab Dip with Hemp Hearts

Blaine Bechtold shared a party-perfect appetizer that incorporates ¼ to ½ cup of hemp hearts for added nutrition and a pleasant nutty flavor.

Ingredients:

• 8 oz cream cheese
• Mayonnaise
• Sour cream
• Shredded cheddar cheese
• Ground mustard
• Lemon juice
• Old Bay seasoning
• Worcestershire sauce
• 1 lb fresh lump crab meat (cut finer than store packaging)
• ¼–½ cup hemp hearts

Tip: Mix hemp hearts into the blend, then sprinkle additional hearts on top before baking. Double the recipe for larger gatherings!

Find hemp hearts at DownOnTheFarm.biz

The Canary Homes project represents exactly what iHemp Michigan advocates for: using hemp to improve lives, starting with farmers and extending to everyone who needs healthier, more sustainable options. Jesse’s home will be the first of many—a proof of concept that safe, affordable, hemp-built housing is possible.

Growing the future from seeds of the past.