CSULB
Opens Habitat for Humanity Chapter
By
Richard Ables
On-line Forty-Niner
Students
and faculty at Cal State Long Beach have
joined together to build affordable housing
for the less fortunate by opening a new
chapter of Habitat for Humanity on campus.
"Over 30 students have already signed
up to participate," said Dr. Edward
Martin, the faculty advisor overseeing the
project.
The
chapter, which will meet at the Public Policy
and Administration Graduate Center, has
already completed one home in Torrance thanks
to the efforts of graduate and undergraduate
student volunteers and has another scheduled
to be built on Dec. 20.
While
the new program is being run through the
graduate center, most of the volunteers
come from other departments on campus.
"PPA
students hold the leadership roles, but
[the program] is open to anyone," Martin
said.
"This
sounds like it will make Habitat for Humanities
more accessible to younger volunteers,"
said Amy O'Bryant, a student at CSULB.
O'Bryant,
who has worked on projects for Habitat for
Humanity through different venues said she
"enjoyed [her] experience because it's
a tangible thing that you can see the results
of."
The CSULB chapter is a subsidiary of the
South Bay/Long Beach Habitat for Humanity,
which has been fighting against substandard
housing for the poverty stricken since 1990
in more than 30 areas reaching from Hawthorne
to Cerritos. Habitat for Humanity builds
and renovates livable housing through its
volunteer labor force and tax-deductible
donations of financial and construction
materials, in cooperation with the "partner
families" for whom the houses are built.
Partner
families apply for assistance through local
affiliates and are selected for eligibility
by a committee based on need, willingness
to participate in the program and ability
to make payments on a no-interest mortgage.
Eligibility for the program requires that
households are already spending at least
35 percent of their income on housing. Mortgage
payments made by partner families are pooled
and used to finance the building of other
homes. Besides an initial down payment of
$1,000 and monthly payments, new homeowners
also contribute hundreds of hours of "sweat
equity" on their home and other Habitat
for Humanity projects.
"Sweat
equity is just another way to say free work,"
explained Martin. Having partner families
involved in the construction process not
only helps the program, it also give new
homeowners a sense of accomplishment and
ownership.
As
a whole, Habitat for Humanity International
has built more than 150,000 homes in around
3,000 communities worldwide for needy families,
relying on donations and volunteer efforts
from local businesses and individuals with
minimal government aid since the private,
non-profit agency was founded more than
27 years ago.
"Habitat
tries to avoid government help because it
usually comes with contingencies,"
said graduate student Larry Brown.
Donated
funds and services come from firms as large
as Dow Chemical Company and the Whirlpool
Corporation to small private businesses
like local painters and electricians. Individuals'
donations also contribute significantly
to Habitat for Humanity's revenues.
Students
who are interested in volunteering for Habitat
for Humanity do not need any special skills
or training. If working on a construction
site doesn't sound appealing "you can
even volunteer in the South Bay office,"
said Brown.
Participation
in the program requires little more than
a pair of closed-toe shoes and sunscreen.
For more information or to sign up, students
can contact the South Bay/Long Beach Habitat
for Humanity at (562) 427-HOME.
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