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24

2018-2019ANNUAL REPORT

Building Houses, Building Hope

Ethel Underwood has celebrated many milestones in her Habitat house over the past 28 years. She raised her daughter, welcomed two grandchildren and retired after 36 years at the Baton Rouge General Medical Center. But she almost lost the home she worked so hard for when it flooded in 2016.

Her house had 6 to 7 feet of water for 6 days following the August 2016 floods. It was one of the first houses cleaned, gutted and rebuilt by

Habitat. She was able to move back home in June 2017.

“That was a disaster, it shocked everybody. No one expected to flood,” she said. “You think the rain will eventually stop, and when I got worried my brother-in-law came and got me. It was at my waist when I left. I couldn’t imagine water coming up that high.”

Back in 1991 Ethel heard about the Habitat program though a friend and decided to apply. The Habitat affiliate had only existed for three years at that point, and Ethel’s home was the eighth Habitat house in Baton Rouge. At the time, the affiliate only rehabbed existing homes and Ethel’s home was donated by Premiere Mortgage Company on a street that would eventually have seven Habitat homes.

She reached an important milestone in 2009 when she paid off her mortgage after 17 years as a homeowner. “That was an exciting day,” she said.

Ethel said she enjoyed raising her daughter Latasha in their own home, alongside the other Habitat homeowners on her street. Later, her house became a place to spend time with her two grandsons who are now in high school and college. She is now enjoying retirement there after nearly losing her house in the flood. She is thankful to Habitat and all the volunteers and donors who made both her home and the flood rebuild possible.

“ I have really enjoyed owning my own home,” she said. “This home will be in my family forever.”

Homeowner SpotlightEthel Underwood

Dear Habitat Friends,

As we celebrate our 30th year empowering local families through shelter, it’s important to reflect on the people who make our work possible. The support of our volunteers, donors, staff and homeowner families have put us in an elite group. We are proud to be in the top 3% of U.S. Habitat affiliates for building capacity.

This accomplishment is the direct result of many thousands of volunteers and donors giving their time, talents and voice to our mission over the past 30 years. Hundreds of families have worked alongside our volunteers and staff to build their homes and make

their dreams a reality. Habitat homeowners have paid millions in mortgage payments over the past 30 years, which helps us build more homes with more deserving families.

The impact of your support goes far beyond the number of houses built by our Habitat affiliate. Your support allows us to empower local families by providing them with decent, affordable homes. When a family partners with Habitat to build a place they can call home, they are also building a better life. They are pushing themselves with strength they didn’t know they had to achieve more than they thought possible. Families living in poverty and poor housing conditions often dream of stability while being forced to move from place to place. The stability of a forever home facilitates children doing better in school and parents getting better jobs. And finally, home applicants that partner with Habitat come to realize that they can take charge of their futures. They take classes to learn how to manage their finances and maintain their houses. They take pride in having been a part of their own housing solutions.

Our work with your support not only directly benefits our family partners, but it also has a positive impact on the surrounding community. Higher homeownership rates have broad community benefits, including higher overall home values, lower crime rates and better school systems. Children who grow up in safe and affordable housing are healthier and safer. They do better in school and are more likely to continue their education. At Habitat, we know that a safe and stable home is foundational. It positively impacts all aspects of a family’s life.

All these efforts help us fulfill the founding vision of Habitat, which is that everyone deserves a simple, decent place to live. On behalf of the Board of Directors and staff, we thank the Baton Rouge community for 30 years of incredible and ongoing support and we look forward to continuing our efforts and making an even greater impact over the next 30 years!

Sincerely, Jordan B. Monsour, Board President

Operational Expenses

Through conservative spending, sound accounting, and incredible volunteer support, Habitat for Humanity of Greater Baton Rouge spent 8.3% of its budget last year on overhead. This allows us to build more homes with deserving partner families.

Total Audited Functional Expense Support Services

$250,442

Less Rent $0

Total Adjusted Support $250,442

Total Audited Expenses $4,557,677 Less ReStore $1,537,720Less Rent $0Total Adjusted Audited Expenses $3,019,957

Operational Expenses at June 30, 2017

8.3%

“ I support Habitat for Humanity’s Women Build because I love seeing a homeowner’s dream come true. With the help of the community, week by week, you get to see physical evidence of that dream coming to life. It’s a powerful visual!”

Liz Koh WAFB 9News This Morning

A Message from Our Board President

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76634-51426_Annual Report.indd 1 5/17/19 2:58 PM

2018-2019 Board of Directors

PresidentJordan MonsourButler Snow

Vice PresidentKathy Fletcher VictorianHealthy Blue Louisiana

TreasurerBridget KaiglerBringing Leadership Back, LLC

SecretaryParker Kilgore Jones Walker

Legal CounselJim EllisTaylor, Porter, Brooks & Phillips

MembersJeff BoudreauxKean Miller

Tammy GremillionDigestive Health Center of Louisiana

Ralph HennessyMichael Baker International

Hunter HinesBancorp South Insurance Services

Bryon HumeTipton-Associates

Angell JacksonEBR Council on Aging

Stacy KaklisBaton Rouge Business Report

Sean KirklandRed River Bank

Brandon LagardePostlethwaite & Netterville

Rev. Clee LoweGreater Mount Carmel Baptist Church

Laura MonroeHannis T Bourgeois, LLP

Guy OliverGW Oliver Construction

Alvin WashingtonSouthern University Law

Matt ZagottiRyan, LLC

Lynn T. ClarkExecutive Director

Habitat for Humanity of Greater Baton Rouge is a Christian-based ministry that builds and renovates houses in partnership with the community. We provide opportunities for families in need to purchase their own homes, build community and improve their lives.

PurposeHabitat for Humanity of Greater Baton Rouge works in partnership with low-income families and the community to eliminate poverty housing. Habitat is not a handout but a “hand up.” Homes are sold to partner families at no profit and financed by Habitat with affordable, no-interest loans. The incomes of those selected fall within the range of 27% to 60% of median family income for the parish where they live.

Criteria for OwnershipSelection is based on housing need, ability to repay the cost of the home, and willingness to partner with Habitat for Humanity. An important aspect of the Habitat partnership is the requirement that all partner families put in 255 hours of “sweat equity” helping to build their homes. Since 1989 more than 112,000 volunteers have worked alongside our homeowner partners and their families and friends. Homeowners are also required to attend homeowner education courses and pay closing costs.

HistorySince 1989, Habitat volunteers have renovated or built safe, affordable homes for 360 families. Habitat for Humanity of Greater Baton Rouge serves a four parish area including Ascension, East Baton Rouge, West Baton Rouge and Iberville.

Disaster ReliefHabitat for Humanity of Greater Baton Rouge is not traditionally a disaster recovery organization, but when our community suffers, we must be a part of the recovery process.

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast. Just three months later our affiliate responded by building four homes in November 2005 in a one-week blitz build – the first houses built anywhere for Katrina evacuees. Habitat’s largest blitz build was also in response to Katrina – 14 houses built in one week during May 2006. Nearly 600 volunteers from across the U.S. and Canada helped us build. A total of 73 homes were eventually built with Hurricane Katrina evacuees.

The catastrophic floods of August 2016 damaged 142,000 homes in South Louisiana, with only a small percentage insured against flooding. The result was thousands of homeowners struggling to rebuild, many of them without the financial means to repair their homes. Our construction staff and teams of volunteers gutted and cleaned 85 damaged community homes immediately following the flood and rebuilt 21 homes with homeowners in need.

Volunteer SpotlightSuper Crew

Volunteers are the heart of Habitat for Humanity. Over the past 30 years more than 112,000 people have generously given their time to make homeownership possible for 360 local families. No experience is necessary to swing a hammer on the build site, but there is also a need for volunteers interested in sharing their construction and leadership skills with us.

The Super Crew is a group of construction volunteers whose skill and knowledge

of our building practices make them invaluable to our mission. According to Frank LeDoux, Construction Director, not only do they work as volunteers on our build sites, but their experience allows them to assist our staff with supervising other volunteers and keeps our builds on schedule.

There is no required level of experience to join the Super Crew, but generally members are available to work on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Some of the volunteers are relatively new to Habitat and some have been involved with our mission for many years.

Kelly Serio has volunteered with Habitat for over 20 years. He began his relationship with Habitat through the Vinyl Partners Blitz Builds when he worked for Formosa, and he continued to volunteer through St. Jean Vianney Catholic Church on the annual Catholic Build.

“I was immediately taken by the comradery amongst the volunteers and the Habitat staff. However, it was in meeting the future homeowners where I came to appreciate the value which Habitat brings to the Baton Rouge community,” he said. “Over the years I was able to witness the transforming effect the Habitat Builds were having, not just with individuals but with whole communities. It was during this period I established the conviction that Habitat would be part of my life in retirement.”

Jim Quick joined the Super Crew in 2017 and came to Habitat with little construction experience but was eager to find a meaningful way to spend his time in retirement. “I NEVER framed a house in my life but had always been a ‘handyman’ of sorts, so I started learning about houses and fell in love with the whole idea of building,” he said. “I look forward to the challenge and learning. It’s rewarding to look back at what you have built.”

“I fell in with the best group of full-time people and volunteers I could ever wish for,” Jim added. “I enjoy the challenge, the new things I seem to learn every day I’m there, and the fellowship with really good people.”

Anyone with some availability during the week and an interest in becoming more skilled on the build site is welcome to join the Super Crew. Please contact Kristen Lee at kristen@habitatbrla.org or 225-927-6651 for more information.

ReStore/ExxonMobil BuildExxonMobil and the Habitat ReStore co-sponsored a home in February 2018. Since 1989, ExxonMobil has partially funded 6 homes, and fully sponsored 11 homes. Additionally, ExxonMobil donated one rehab house that was moved and renovated for a deserving family. This build was the 15th home sponsored by the Habitat ReStore.

Albemarle Youth Build The Albemarle Foundation sponsored its 12th Albemarle Youth Blitz Build in March 2018. Construction was completed in four weekends by students and teachers from Catholic High School, Episcopal High School, St. Joseph’s Academy, and employees of the Albemarle Corp

LSU Greek Build The LSU Fraternities and Sororities spent Greek Week in April 2018 building two homes with deserving families. These are the 25th and 26th homes built by the Greeks since they began their partnership with Habitat in 2005. They have raised almost $2 million in support of Habitat’s mission.

Catholic Build The Catholic Coalition built its 26th Habitat home in April 2018. The Catholic Coalition includes seven area churches – Most Blessed Sacrament, Our Lady of Mercy, St. Aloysius, St. George, St. Jean Vianney, St. Patrick and St. Alphonsus.

Methodist Build The United Methodist Churches of Greater Baton Rouge have been building homes and hope with low-income families since 1988. Last September they built their 36th home.

First Presbyterian BuildFirst Presbyterian Church built its 6th Habitat home in September. First Presbyterian has been partnering with Habitat since 2006.

Women Build The 14th Annual Women Build home was built last October. Since 2005, Women Build has been bringing together women to actively address the problem of local women and children living in poverty.

2018 BUILDS “ Habitat for Humanity is a blessing to the Greater Baton Rouge community. In Matthew 25:35 Jesus says that those of us who are blessed are expected to be a blessing to others if we are going to inherit the kingdom. With Habitat, we’re turning blight into a blessing.”

Pastor Rene Brown President of the 4th District Missionary Baptist Association

“ Habitat for Humanity is a remarkable organization whose indispensable efforts provide housing for families that otherwise would be unable to afford one. Over the past year, we have worked with Habitat to establish an ongoing program where ExxonMobil employees assist Habitat through monthly projects. Whether participating in a blessing of the home or building a home, these rewarding projects provide ExxonMobil employees an opportunity to use their skills, enhance team building, and build a better place in their communities and workplaces. Our hope is that through our partnership with Habitat we can continue to support the families of the Baton Rouge community.”

Jeff Blohm Mechanical Manager ExxonMobil Baton Rouge Complex

The Habitat ReStore is a retail outlet where quality, used and surplus building materials are sold at a fraction of normal prices. Proceeds from the ReStore help fund the construction of Habitat houses within our community. Materials sold by Habitat ReStore are usually donated from building supply stores, contractors, demolition crews or from individuals. In addition to raising funds, the ReStore helps the environment by rechanneling good, usable materials into use. In 2018, the ReStore saved more than 1,073 TONS of usable building materials from the landfill.

ReStore North 4301 Airline Hwy

Baton Rouge, LA 70805(Established 2003)

ReStore Southeast 10300 Perkins Road

Baton Rouge, LA 70810(Established 2016)

Donation Hotline

(225) 315-0127

Timeline1989 The first Habitat home was a

rehab located in the Zion City neighborhood of Baton Rouge.

2003 We built our 100th home on Bartlett Street in Baton Rouge.

2005 We began building a total of 73 homes with Hurricane Katrina evacuees.

2013 We built our 300th home in the Scotlandville neighborhood of Baton Rouge.

2016 We gutted 85 homes and rebuilt 21 homes in response to the flood of 2016.

2019 We have built or renovated 360 homes in our 30 year history.

ECONOMIC IMPACT DISASTER RELIEF

volunteers giving their

time and talents on the

build site, in the office

and at the Habitat

ReStore.

ReStore gross sales in

support of Habitat's

mission to eliminate

substandard housing

from our community.

$10.6M

$13.4Mhomes built or rehabbed

and sold to qualified

local families.

360 112,000

44neighborhoods uplifted

through stable families,

eliminated blight, and

increased property

values.

homes built with

Hurricane Katrina

evacuees.

73 600

BUILDING HOMES & HOPE

Habitat Facts

volunteers from across

the US and Canada who

helped build with

Hurricane Katrina

evacuees.

annual economic impact

created by Habitat and its

operations.

21homes rebuilt with

community members in

need following the

flood of 2016.

homes cleaned &

gutted with community

members in need

following the flood of

2016.

85taxes paid annually by

Habitat homeowners.

$2M

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