HABITAT FOR HUMANITY INTERNATIONAL
Habitat for Humanity International Website
• Started in 1976 by Millard and Linda Fuller. In the first 26 years more than 125,000 houses were built to house more than 450,000 people. The plan to build an additional 100,000 houses in 5 years was completed in 2006. That now houses more than 800,000 people with their own quality, affordable home.
• Every 24 minutes a Habitat house is completed somewhere in the world.
• Habitat for Humanity is an ecumenical, Christian, housing ministry dedicated to eliminating substandard housing from the earth. This is done by building or rehabilitating one house at a time.
• This is a chance to put our faith into action locally as the activity and operation targets local needs.
• Habitat for Humanity principles :
• Economics of Jesus - God uses the small to accomplish the great. The weak become strong and the average become above average. All human life is priceless no matter what. We are to share what we have.
• Theology of the Hammer - It is our duty to put aside our differences, work together and through the use of the hammer we will show God’s love. It is a partnership with God.
The affiliate is :
• A local, nonprofit, ecumenical, Christian organization.
• Created and operated by local people. Decisions are made and money spent locally.
• Allows everyone to put their faith into action and eliminate substandard housing locally and worldwide through the covenant relationship with HFHI.
• Habitat for Humanity is a people to people partnership and acts in a non discriminatory manner.
• Families buy their homes through a no interest, no profit mortgage and must invest many hours of volunteer labor through sweat equity to become homeowners.
• It is a program to enable families to own their home that would not be able to own in any other way.
• Government funds are accepted in only limited ways.
• The local affiliate has a tithe covenant to support HFHI and this assists the building of houses around the world.
HABITAT FOR HUMANITY OF SAUK COLUMBIA AREA
• The local affiliate has unofficially been in existence since 1999.
• Habitat for Humanity of Sauk Columbia Area was given final approval as of 12/01/01.
• We are serious about our commitment to this area and its substandard housing needs.
• Phases of group activity and possible individual interest are :
• Site Selection - ongoing search for building sites.
• Development - PR, fund development and many other duties of the organization.
• Church Relations - establishes and maintains relationships with our church partners.
• Family Selection - screens and selects our partner families.
• Family Support - assists in family support and partnering with families selected.
• Building - makes the realization of the actual construction happen.
• Volunteer - many coordinating tasks for planning participation of volunteers.
• Nomination - plans the smooth transition into our group.
• The affiliate needs between 40 - 70 people to make the organization work flow smoothly.
• Partners are needed in the church community, business and industry community, and any individual relationships are needed and are being established.
• Board of Directors - responsible for the official performance of the affiliate.
• Our geographical area to serve is all of Sauk and Columbia counties and we intend to do that in time.
• All committees are active and we have: families interested in home ownership, funds being developed, building sites being searched, volunteers being recruited, and communities, churches, and groups being made aware of our existence.
DID YOU KNOW
• It takes about $60,000 - $90,000 to build a Habitat house in our area.
• Average mortgage payment is around $300 - 600 including taxes and insurance.
• There is a second mortgage in place to insure against windfall profits by homeowners. That is forgiven as the family lives in their home over the years.
• Each home owner in our affiliate must contribute 200 hours of sweat equity per adult up to a maximum of 400 hours.
• The tithe builds from 1 - 5 houses elsewhere depending upon the location and cost variations in the world. The tithe is used 100% to house construction.
• Garages prevent home owners - for every 10 garages built 1 less house can be built and 1 family is denied a home. However, some deed restrictions require garages in certain areas.
• This is a program for families that could not own their own home in any other way.
• Through this activity we build houses and see changed lives. It is about helping people.
• In our area there are 1300 families that make less than the median income range of 30 -50%, which is represented by family size. For a family of one to a family of four the range is from $12,300 - $29,300. *There are also 55% of the low income families that spend more than 30% of their income on housing needs.
• There are more than 50 families on the waiting list for rent assisted subsidized housing.
• Our affiliate has built three single family homes and one duplex. The first house was in Sauk City, completed in September 2003. The second was completed in Baraboo in December 2004. A duplex was completed in Lodi and a house move and refurbishing was completed in Baraboo, both in 2006. In 2008 we plan on one home build in Baraboo and possibly one or two more in other areas of Sauk and Columbia counties.
• The fastest house built was in 2003 in Shelby County, Alabama and was built in 3 hours, 26 minutes and 34 seconds.
• In 1999 Jimmy Carter and 12,000 volunteers from 32 countries built 293 houses in one week.
• You can not do everything, but you can so something and when you do that something we can all be effective in this partnership with God.
• Won’t it be nice to be able to continue to accomplish this right here? Won’t you come join us?