A publication of Greater Des Moines Habitat for Humanity

Fall 2014Fall 2014

On September 16, nine area leaders took a day away from work and spent it volunteering with Greater Des Moines Habitat for Humanity’s (GDM Habitat) CEO Build. The CEO Build is an opportunity for area leaders to come together, pick up a hammer, and serve the needs of the Des Moines community. The morning began by raising the first walls to the house alongside Han, who will be purchasing the home. By the afternoon, all of the house’s walls were in place.

Through the CEO Build, executives get to lead the charge in making a difference in the Des Moines community by helping to build a home. “Access to affordable housing is one of Bank of America’s community priorities,” said Deon Pitsor, Iowa State President, Bank of America. “The CEO Build Day provides the opportunity for me to lead by example.”

John Sorensen, President and CEO of Iowa Bankers Association, spent his day working on the CEO Build. “I was inspired by comments from Han, our prospective homeowner, on what it meant to her and her family,” said Sorensen. “She clearly intends to be a good neighbor, mother and community member. She was just coming off a sixteen-hour work shift and was headed to a continuing education class later that day. It felt good to be one of many helpful hands.”

Later this fall, Han will purchase the house the CEOs worked on. Han has five sons and is excited to be purchasing a home for her family. She is looking forward for her children to be raised in a home and to be able to run freely. When asked how her life will be different after becoming a homeowner she said, “Homeownership is the beginning of our dream to me and my family,” said Han. “It is a great opportunity and investment.”

Local Leaders Volunteer on CEO Build

Mission Statement:Seeking to put God’s love into action,

Greater Des Moines Habitat for Humanity brings people together to build homes, community and hope.

For more information or questions about content in Framework, please contact Amy Smith at asmith@gdmhabitat.org or by phone 515-471-8686.

framework

www.gdmhabitat.org

On September 3, GDM Habitat received Iowa Finance Authority’s HousingIowa Single-Family Housing Development Award at the 2014 HousingIowa Conference. The award recognized GDM Habitat’s work leveraging housing to assist low-income families and revitalize blighted neighborhoods.

“I congratulate Greater Des Moines Habitat for Humanity on their commitment to affordable housing,” said Iowa Finance Authority Executive Director Dave Jamison. “The benefits of GDM Habitat’s Affordable

Homeownership Programs will reap many benefits, not only for the Iowans they serve, but for the local community as well.”

GDM Habitat’s successes are not possible without the generous support of the community. Your support by volunteering, donating, and shopping has helped parents provide a stable home for their children, transformed neighborhoods, and built hope for the future.

GDM Habitat Receives HousingIowa Award

Left to Right: Lance Henning, John Sorensen, Mary O’Keefe, Tanner Kinzler, Deon Pitsor, Jeff Logan, GDM Habitat Homebuyer Han, Tim Schutte, Chris Welp, and Bruce Logan.

3HABITAT FRAMEWORK • FALL 2014 FALL 2014 • HABITAT FRAMEWORK www.gdmhabitat.orgwww.gdmhabitat.org2

GDM Habitat’s vision is a community where everyone has a decent place to live. Families should have a place they can afford, that is a safe, stable place to put down roots and be a part of the community. This type of house serves as a family’s foundation and is where they come together to celebrate life’s successes.

For so many people in the Des Moines community, though, this type of home and foundation simply doesn’t exist. There are more than 10,000 families in Polk County spending more than half of their income on housing costs. This means that families are then making tradeoffs – cutting back on healthcare, providing their children with fewer healthy foods, sacrificing time with their children to take on a second job, or moving to a less safe neighborhood.

GDM Habitat is working with families to limit their need to make tradeoffs by creating affordable and sustainable homeownership opportunities. We do this through our extensive homeowner and financial education classes, which teach families to care for their home and creates financial stability. Homebuyers are also invested by spending their days off and weekends building their home and putting in sweat equity. These sacrifices are made so tradeoffs don’t have to be made later.

Furthermore, limiting tradeoffs for families strengthens the Des Moines community as a whole. In recent survey, nearly 9 out of 10 GDM Habitat homeowners said that they plan to be in their Habitat house in five years. This not only translates into stability for their family and children, but also stability for their community.

All of these things working together are small steps toward reaching GDM Habitat’s vision – a place where everyone has a decent place to live. When families have a place they can afford that is a safe and stable, their children can do better in school. This type of home means that parents don’t have to make tradeoffs between paying the rent and putting healthy food on their table. It means that families have the freedom, independence, and stability that homeownership offers, and that families can focus on what really matters – being a family.

Your support and partnership are changing Des Moines and helping families reach their true potential.

In partnership,

GREETINGS FROM OUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

On Thursday, September 4, close to three hundred people gathered at the Community Choice Credit Union Convention Center in downtown Des Moines to celebrate the partners who have made building homes, community, and hope in Des Moines neighborhoods possible.

Those honored included Tanner Kinzler, Community Key Award; Mary Lou Neugent, Community Key Award; Stan and Dotty Thurston, Individual Key Award; Tom Urban, Community Key Award; and The Principal Financial Group, Corporate Key Award.

Each of the honorees has worked alongside GDM Habitat in various capacities including serving on the Family Selection Committee and Board of Directors, building partnerships, advocating for the organization and Des Moines neighborhoods, providing house sponsorships and volunteers, traveling to El Salvador to build there, and providing training and expertise.

During the evening, Homeowner Randy Wallace (pictured below) shared about how partnering with GDM

Habitat to purchase his home has changed his life. Homeownership has helped Randy provide his family with stability, security, and a place to call home that they would not otherwise have. When asked about how life as a homeowner is different than that of a renter, he responded by sharing the moments that his family gets to be together. “I’ve always believed that a family that eats together stays together,” said Randy. “When we lived in the apartment, we never had room for that. But in a home, our family can be together.”

When accepting her Individual Key Award, Dotty Thurston reinforced Randy’s words from earlier in the evening. “Having a home is a big deal,” she said. “It gives us security, a place where we gather with family and friends. It is where we go at the end of the day to recharge and where we can just be ourselves. Some of our most fondest memories in life will happen in our homes. But this is not true with most of the world. Homeownership will never be a possibility.”

Dotty and the five other Key Award Honorees have helped make homeownership a possibility in many Des Moines neighborhoods.

The Key Awards: Honoring Our Partners in Building Homes, Communities, and Hope

ReStore: Customer DIY Project

The ReStore has a large and diverse inventory, including appliances, paint, flooring, and nearly everything in between. Many of our items are donated by individuals, builders, contractors, and manufacturers, which keeps great items like this cabinet set out of the waste stream.

Our friends Tim and Meladee found this white cabinet set while shopping in the ReStore and decided it would fit their style and look great in their home. It looks awesome, and they are very happy with their finished kitchen remodel.

Thanks for sharing your project, Tim and Meladee!

If you would like to share the projects the ReStore has helped you complete, snap a few pictures and send a description to us at kreynoldson@gdmhabitat.org. You could receive a ReStore gift card if we share your project with our followers!

Left to right: Lance Henning,Executive Director/President of GDM Habitat with Key Award honorees Mary Lou Neugent, Stan and Dotty Thurston, Julia Lawler and Larry Zimpleman representing The Principal Financial Group, and Tanner Kinzler. Not pictured: Tom Urban.

Left: Randy Wallace shares how homeownership has changed his life.

Right: Jim Baker, Jennifer Worley, GDM Habitat Board Chair John Worley, Steve Dreyer, Cornell Fuerer, and GDM Habitat Board Secretary Courtney Chabot Dreyer.

Lance Henning Executive Director/President

This fall, GDM Habitat is introducing a new initiative and opportunity to be involved with the organization, the Builders Circle. The Builders Circle is a group of like-minded individuals who believe in GDM Habitat’s mission of building homes, communities, and hope and want to join together to carry it out.

The Builders Circle is chaired by Cara Heiden, Bob Meyers, and Mary O’Keefe. “I’m excited that our Habitat for Humanity is launching the Builders Circle,” said Heiden. “In this way, a society of individual community leaders will be formed, who invest in Habitat’s very good work. It also further recognizes the leadership position that our Habitat has earned, providing safe and decent housing and revitalizing entire neighborhoods.”

The Builders Circle is GDM Habitat’s leadership giving society for individuals who give $2,500 or more during the year. With their investment, members of the Builders Circle build the foundation for a

brighter future for families and transform communities, one home at a time. Members of the Builders Circle lead the way with vital charitable revenue for home construction, financial education, community partnership, and program expansion.

To join or learn more about the Builders Circle, contact Patrice Maurer at 515-471-8686.

Join The Builders Circle