Habitat for Humanity - WTF?

[Goldielocks]

This week, an opportunity to volunteer & participate in a future build event, labelled “Women Build” with my co-workers for Habitat for Humanity came up.  I quickly expressed interest in this very good cause and went to find out more.   I was surprised how the event was organized – not at all what I had thought – and want to ask all of you if this is the “usual” way?

My original assumption – volunteer for a build event (usually a single family residence),  donating time, tools, skills and modest funds (maybe $100-$200) towards materials, and work hard (physically) together to make something happen.  Volunteer weekly or just for a day, depending on what you sign up for, and different groups would likely put in effort on different parts of the construction until it was complete.  Corporate or financial sponsors assist with the materials, land, and money, to round out the non-profit store earnings.

Reality – this is organized like a “run for a cure” donation event, with lots of media publicity, (e.g. fundarising dinners, etc). and a minimum donation requirement of $1000 donation to participate, so most people end up asking via facebook / email for online donations.   The actual build details are not well known now or minor compared to the fundraising / media components.  Because I do not have $1000 I want to personally give just to this, and I will not beg for donations from my co-workers, I will not be participating after all. --  I will give my co-worker a cash donation, just not $1000!


I actually feel a bit put out that my time, tools and talents are not of value in and of themselves but must be paid for with $1000 for the privilege of participating.  I also did not like their egregious use of pink hardhats in photos of women at charity dinners (who would not bring a hard hat to dinner, silly! AAAND likely never get close to one in real life, AAAND never, ever, have I seen a pink hardhat on someone actually working).  I find it a bit of a put-down to women working in construction / building engineering.  Makes me feel that my value is mostly as a photo-op, not as a working volunteer.    And all this for an event that is supposed to be about women showing what they can build together… ?!  huh.

http://www.habitatgv.ca/page.aspx?pageId=33

What is your experience of Habitat for humanity?  Is a large participation fee to volunteer the norm?

[Jack]

WTF?

The last time I volunteered at Habitat for Humanity, I signed up ahead of time on their website, showed up at their warehouse in the morning, signed a waiver, spent a an hour or so hammering together 2x4 walls, drove to the worksite (along with the stack of walls) and helped put them up, did some caulking between the bottom plate and the floor (by which time the sheathing was done), put up some fiber cement siding (which sucks to hand-nail, by the way) and finally went home.

At no time was I required to donate any actual money.

[seattlecyclone]

I have volunteered for Habitat several times, in two different states. It has always involved physical labor at a home site. I have never been asked to raise one cent as a condition of volunteering. Of course they send periodic emails to past volunteers asking for donations, but there's never been any implication that donations are expected or required in order to continue volunteering with the building process.

[CheapskateWife]

I have no direct experience with HFH, but as a woman in construction, I can tell you for a fact that the pink hardhat on my site is reserved for the idiot who shows up for work without his/her equipment. 

[DeepEllumStache]

My impression is that the donation is a locally determined requirement. 

In college, we set up out of state volunteer trips over spring break on a $250 budget.  One year we did HFH and the person planning had to call several cities' chapters to compare required donation amounts.  One group required something like $500 per volunteer.  The lowest she could find was one that only required $50 per volunteer.

[HalfDollar]

That's crazy! $50 per volunteer is too much too!

[Spork]

That would absolutely turn me off, too.  Putting some sort of price or conditions on what I consider to be "an honest charitable gift" would send me running.  If it were me, I'd choose some other charity for my donation/volunteer work -- then I'd let both the local and the national HfH know exactly what you did and why.

[LadyStache]

I think it's just a weird twist that your local chapter is doing. It's definitely not the norm. I think you should complain to the parent organization that the policy is prohibiting you from being able to volunteer your time.

If you would be interested in volunteering at a non-women build event, I found the application form and I don't think they would require the mandatory minimum donation for that. https://www.volgistics.com/ex/portal.dll/ap?AP=1368443382

[ysette9]

That is definitely not the norm based on my experience with HFH. I have even done a women build project where everything was the same as other projects except for the main contractor and most everyone else was female. As other posters have said, I showed up, filled out my waiver, and then happily got to work twisting rebar or pounding nails or cutting insulation. In fact, I loved those projects so much I have volunteering for HFH high up on my list of how I want to spend my time when one day I no longer have to work for a living.

[Goldielocks]

Thanks for all your posts so far.  I thought I was crazy for thinking it was strange, too.

Keep them coming!

[NinetyFour]

I have volunteered a few times and was never asked for a donation.  But one time, at one point during the work day (maybe right after lunch?), the group huddled for a prayer of some kind.  As an atheist, I was uncomfortable and wandered off.  I returned after the prayer and continued working.  No big deal.

[LadyStache]

I have volunteered a few times and was never asked for a donation.  But one time, at one point during the work day (maybe right after lunch?), the group huddled for a prayer of some kind.  As an atheist, I was uncomfortable and wandered off.  I returned after the prayer and continued working.  No big deal.

Yeah, that's totally normal.

As a nonprofit, ecumenical Christian ministry that builds with people in need regardless of race or religion, we welcome volunteers and supporters from all backgrounds. 

[forummm]

I volunteered once. Wasn't asked for money--that I recall.

I think it's generally a good charity. However, when I volunteered it was during the foreclosure crisis, and there were plenty of really cheap homes all around. The lady buying the one we were building was paying something like $125k for hers. And literally across the street there were houses selling for $25k. Part of the program is that Habitat arranges 0% financing for the new owner. I couldn't understand why we were building new houses when there was a huge housing glut on the market and we could have made much better use of the money, improved neighborhoods, etc, by fixing up the foreclosures as needed and helping people get the financing for those existing houses.

Now that the foreclosures are gone, their normal business model makes sense again. It just didn't at the time--as far as I could see anyway.

[TreeTired]

I volunteered here and worked on a build.  Showed up and they put me to work with other volunteers.  But they also do fund raising.   All materials and land are not donated, they have to buy lots of stuff.   They also make trips to South America and build houses down there.  That costs money too.   There are fund raising events that are separate and different from the volunteer opportunities to work on builds.

[seattlecyclone]

I think it's generally a good charity. However, when I volunteered it was during the foreclosure crisis, and there were plenty of really cheap homes all around. The lady buying the one we were building was paying something like $125k for hers. And literally across the street there were houses selling for $25k. Part of the program is that Habitat arranges 0% financing for the new owner. I couldn't understand why we were building new houses when there was a huge housing glut on the market and we could have made much better use of the money, improved neighborhoods, etc, by fixing up the foreclosures as needed and helping people get the financing for those existing houses.

Habitat was doing exactly this in the Seattle area with foreclosures. The homes often had to be pretty extensively renovated, but it's sure better for the neighborhood to have those houses in nicer shape with committed owners.

[Candace]

I had the same experience as most of the posters here. Sign up via the website, go to the site on the appointed day, sign a waiver, and get to work doing whatever was being done that day. Bring your own food. No donations requested.

[Bracken_Joy]

This week, an opportunity to volunteer & participate in a future build event, labelled “Women Build” with my co-workers for Habitat for Humanity came up.  I quickly expressed interest in this very good cause and went to find out more.   I was surprised how the event was organized – not at all what I had thought – and want to ask all of you if this is the “usual” way?

My original assumption – volunteer for a build event (usually a single family residence),  donating time, tools, skills and modest funds (maybe $100-$200) towards materials, and work hard (physically) together to make something happen.  Volunteer weekly or just for a day, depending on what you sign up for, and different groups would likely put in effort on different parts of the construction until it was complete.  Corporate or financial sponsors assist with the materials, land, and money, to round out the non-profit store earnings.

Reality – this is organized like a “run for a cure” donation event, with lots of media publicity, (e.g. fundarising dinners, etc). and a minimum donation requirement of $1000 donation to participate, so most people end up asking via facebook / email for online donations.   The actual build details are not well known now or minor compared to the fundraising / media components.  Because I do not have $1000 I want to personally give just to this, and I will not beg for donations from my co-workers, I will not be participating after all. --  I will give my co-worker a cash donation, just not $1000!


I actually feel a bit put out that my time, tools and talents are not of value in and of themselves but must be paid for with $1000 for the privilege of participating.  I also did not like their egregious use of pink hardhats in photos of women at charity dinners (who would not bring a hard hat to dinner, silly! AAAND likely never get close to one in real life, AAAND never, ever, have I seen a pink hardhat on someone actually working).  I find it a bit of a put-down to women working in construction / building engineering.  Makes me feel that my value is mostly as a photo-op, not as a working volunteer.    And all this for an event that is supposed to be about women showing what they can build together… ?!  huh.

http://www.habitatgv.ca/page.aspx?pageId=33

What is your experience of Habitat for humanity?  Is a large participation fee to volunteer the norm?

Us wimmins can only jog for a cause. Heaven forbid we pick up a hammer. Our uteruseses might fall right out!!!!

[DeepEllumStache]

Us wimmins can only jog for a cause. Heaven forbid we pick up a hammer. Our uteruseses might fall right out!!!!

Unless it is a pink hammer.

[Knapptyme]

I, too, just showed up at a worksite, signed a waiver, and proceeded to help with vinyl siding, floor joists, tiling, pouring and smoothing concrete and all sorts of stuff needed to complete the house. I worked alongside fellow men, women, and of-age youth at about five different locations. It seems like you happened to be linked to a fundraising stunt that I guess they might do elsewhere. The construction work, however, is a lot more friendly and kinder on the wallet, too.

It was a great experience, and I would do it again. Plus, HFH doesn't just give the homes away, they set up a responsible payment plan to cover material costs of the home. The volunteers and labor come free outside of the HFH foreman onsite. They also expect the future homeowner to contribute a nominal amount of man/woman hours to the construction or cleanup process.

[rosaz]

I've looked at their website before (never got around to volunteering with them yet), but it seems like donations are required for groups volunteering, but not for individuals.

On the one hand, yeah it's pretty irritating to be asked to pay to volunteer, but on the other hand, they need $X and Y man-hours to build a house; if they have lots of available man-hours (a lot of people in their area like volunteering there) but can't fully utilize them because they don't have enough cash, it makes sense to make it pay-to-play. Sure, some people won't volunteer then, but they wouldn't be able to use all the volunteers anyway if they don't have the necessary cash. They might still be able to build more houses with more cash but fewer volunteers.

[REAL WORLD EXPAT]

I have volunteered a few times and was never asked for a donation.  But one time, at one point during the work day (maybe right after lunch?), the group huddled for a prayer of some kind.  As an atheist, I was uncomfortable and wandered off.  I returned after the prayer and continued working.  No big deal.

Same here, turned up, signed waiver, ate fee bagel as others prayed, got to work and had a really fun time and got some exercise. Never got asked for money and got a free breakfast and lunch.