Seeing 35 foundation slabs made Stephen Whitley “kind of go blank.
“This is unbelievable that 35 houses can be built in a week by all volunteers,” said Whitley, from Center Point.
Whitley thought volunteers would work on one house this week, so when he saw the 35 foundations, he was a bit overwhelmed.
He’s a newcomer to Habitat, and his story mixed with others’ on the work site. Some never miss a Jimmy Carter Work Project. They travel around the globe building houses and bringing the people into the fold of Habitat’s cause.
“It’s like a huge village with everybody helping everyone else,” said Whitley, affectionately known as “Santa” around the house he’s helping to build because of his white hair and beard.
Martin Eichert, 17 of Charlotte, N.C., is among the younger volunteers at the project. His father is construction supervisor for the Charlotte Habitat for Humanity affiliate. Like Whitley, Eichert said he’s been doing everything at the site from framing and roofing the house to installing siding and insulation.
“I think it’s a great experience to help people that don’t have as much as you do,” he said of his more than 12-hour workdays.
Two years ago, he participated in the Jimmy Carter Work Project in South Korea.
LeRoy Troyer, also was there too. He was at the project before that, and the one before that. This is his 18th year working at a JCWP, and his 19th project, because one year, there were two.
Troyer, 65, is a South Bend, Ind., architect who loves the first day when the house is framed and goes up. His other weekly highlight is the last day he sees the smiles on homeowners’ faces as they get their keys.
Marian Johnston’s connection with Habitat for Humanity began when her mother-in-law sent her some products from Koinonia Farm outside of Americus, Ga.
It was at the farm that Millard Fuller, Habitat’s founder and Clarence Jordan, a farmer and biblical scholar, developed the idea of “partnership housing,” the genesis of Habitat for Humanity.
The 75-year-old Pennsylvania woman has been volunteering for 12 years at Habitat’s headquarters in Americus, answering letters. Her husband Bill does video work, for 10 weeks in there in the winter.
“The people are almost always friendly and get over their shyness because they know we’re are all working for the some thing,” she said.
