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Steamboat Springs — Routt County Habitat for Humanity has a full-time director and is back to normal after the loss of $72,000 in an alleged theft in September.

Tommi Weeden accepted the full-time position at the board of directors' last meeting. Weeden served as interim executive director after former executive director Shelly Flannery was charged with a Class 3 Felony for her alleged role in using pre-signed checks to siphon money from the nonprofit organization.

Habitat for Humanity Vice President Tom Lake said Weeden's hard work helped the group find solid financial footing after the loss.

"She did an incredible time getting together what we needed for the insurance claim," Lake said. "She was able to put together the detailed information that was necessary and actually completed the rest of the investigation, determining exactly what was missing and what we should and can legally claim against the insurance plan."

The insurance company accepted the claim and issued a check to the organization as an investigation continues.

Flannery's arraignment is scheduled for Jan. 23. Colorado sentencing guidelines indicate that Flannery could face four to eight years in prison if convicted.

The board unanimously decided to offer Weeden the $55,000 per year job in lieu of advertising the position. Lake said keeping a "known entity" in the organization kept the program running smoothly.

"Since she had basically gotten us back whole with where we were before the unfortunate incident, we felt that she certainly deserved the job," Lake said.

Weeden's husband, Jeff Weeden, is president of the board and abstained from the vote.

A separate audit and a program review by Habitat for Humanity International is ongoing.

A duplex built in Steamboat Springs was near completion when the theft was discovered. Despite the setback, the group finished the house on time, and two families moved in at the end of October.

Lake said the organization is doing well for its scale but that he would like to see a much more ambitious plan if the funds become available.

"If we could build 200 homes next year for people just like the people we built homes for this past year, we would maybe fulfill half of what needs to be done," he said. "That's where ideally I'd like to be, but obviously we're at the point where we can build a duplex a year."

The group is now building a single-family home for the Archuleta family on Shady Lane in Hayden, near Hayden Valley Elementary School. If everything goes as planned, the home will be completed by the summer, Tommi Weeden said.