And, lo, a mighty host appeared, clothed in shining .... denim? and the joyful sound of .... hammering? was heard throughout the land.
Behold, Habitat for Humanity Waynorth's 2010 contribution to breaking the cycle of poverty through enabling low income families to own a home. This is an ICF (insulated concrete form) duplex, with walls rated at R50. Windows and doors are all low E - i'm told you can nearly heat these places with a candle. The folks you're looking at are Habitat for Humanity staff and board members, and some very generous building contractors who are providing their services at very low cost. This was our first 'official' meeting w everyone all in the same place. Not easy to manage, but a lunch meeting with free pizza convinced them to come. We're also hoping to begin a renovation in the fall, of a home built in the 70's, in need of TLC, which we may be purchasing from the city.
These folks all look pretty ordinary don't they? That's the really thrilling thing about Habitat. Everyone IS pretty ordinary. No divas or superstars. But together we make a very big difference.
I was in my granddaughter's classroom this morning. She and i did a little musical interlude for everyone, with our violins. About 15 kids. So far, our little HFH affiliate in north-of-sanity Waynorth has put 9 low income families with a total of 30 children in their own homes. It's been shown that NOTHING breaks the cycle of poverty more effectively than home ownership. That's 2 elementary school classrooms full of kids whose families now have equity in their own homes to help build their futures with.
I love my job.
5 comments:
I love your job too!! big humungous very impressed!!!
This is wonderful news about a great and most worthwhile undertaking. The best jobs are the ones that feed your heart and mind :-)
there are over 300,000 homeless children in california, and that was *before* the latest economic crisis began.
sometimes it seems overwhelming, with so many people needing a chance (or a second chance, or an opportunity, any opportunity).
i think what you are doing is wonderful.
claire - thanks - planted a few very hardy flowers in the ReStore flower boxes last week and thought of your gorgeous garden in Scotland.
su - heart and mind are so well fed they're waddling happily. sadly, the promotion means more time at the desk, and the rest of me is beginning to waddle too.
sera - i've dreamed of working for Habitat since my kids (now grown and on their own) were small. no organization is perfect, but Habitat seems to get so many things right. your numbers bring tears to my eyes. something's gone very wrong when children are homeless.... and 300,000....! that's more than 5 times the entire population of the city where i live. it's tempting to despair. we can't fix everything ourselves. what each of us is able to do seems so small, but we do what we're able to do.... whatever that is. enough small things added together become large things.
so true. if everyone did one good deed a day, we'd all have an excess of riches.
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