Two Local Iowa Citians Head to Haiti to Help Build Houses for Habitat

Two Iowa Citians will head to Haiti Nov. 5 to build 100 homes in one week as part of the Jimmy & Rosalynn Work Project, while closer to home the 1,001 Iowa Habitat for Humanity house will be unveiled in Iowa City this weekend.

Local Attorney and Iowa Valley Habitat for Humanity Board Member Jim Houghton will join Hills Bank Senior Vice President and Former Iowa Valley Habitat for Humanity Board President Brad Langguth to journey to the epicenter of the January 2010 earthquake, Léogâne, about 18 miles from Port au Prince.

"I'm excited to go because this is a chance to give back to these people who are in great need," Houghton said. "We just don't know what it's like here and to see what these folks have gone through, I guess it's a huge opportunity to give back."

Houghton said he and 400 other volunteers will be living "in very primitive conditions" for a week, sharing a tent with five people in a camp that has tight security and no electricity.

Iowa Valley Habitat Executive Director Mark Patton said they always tie 10 percent of their organization's giving to builiding homes in third world countries.

"Every time we build a house here, we’re building at least
another one in another country," Patton said. "They don’t have running water or electricity generally, so we’re building homes where they have that, and moving (people) from the countryside into the neighborhoods that have clean water and sewer."

The Carter work project is held in different locations each year in the U.S. and around the world  - last year the project built homes in Washington, D.C.; Minneapolis and Birmingham.

Habitat’s Carter Work Project is the culmination of a month-long observance of World Habitat Day, which is annually declared by the United Nations and recognizes the need for safe, decent and affordable shelter.

In their last meeting, the Iowa City Council also officially recognized World Habitat Day, Monday, Oct. 3 as a time to reflect on the dire need for adequate shelter around the globe.

The Iowa Valley Habitat for Humanity plans to celebrate World Habitat Day along with the dedication of their latest house, at 2442 Whispering Meadow Drive in Iowa City - the 1,001 Iowa house built by Habitat for Humanity and the 500,000 in the world.

The dedication, open to the public, will feature food and housewarming giveaways, and will be held Sunday, Oct. 2, starting at 2 p.m.

"It's an acknowlegement for all the people who gave money or gave time," Patton said. "On any given Habitat house, you're talking a minimum of 400 diffferent volunteers, with more than 2,000 volunteers participating in a year."

Patton said it's the interest-free loans that make their homes so affordable for applicants of their program, who undergo a double-blind selection process.

"We sell the house at our cost and the real savings to the family is
they sign a no-interest loan," he said. "We don’t give away the homes. They take all the responsibilities of home ownership."

Patton added building energy efficiently also helps the new owners with lower electric bills.

"We’re building the most energy efficienet houses in Iowa City," Patton said. "Except for pride and wanting to do the right thing, it’s not in a developers' interest (financially) to build an energy efficient house, except what is required; but it’s in the family’s best interest."

The homes also "give back" to the city in the form of property taxes.

"The city of Iowa City gets about $80,000 per year in property taxes, and that goes on forever," he said. "Too many times, it’s
perceived that nonprofit groups don't take part in the tax rolls, but in all our homes, once we build them, they’re not subsidized beyond that."

The sponsor for this project was Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, insurance and retirement planning services.

"They give away 5 percent of their profits, so they picked Habitat as the company want to work with," Patton said, adding the University of Iowa Tippie College of Business is funding their next house project, already underway.

Habitat will also implement events in more than 40 countries throughout October to draw attention to the importance of shelter in post-disaster settings.

For more information about Iowa Valley Habitat for Humanity, call 319-337-8949 or stop by 2401 Scott Blvd., Iowa City, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.