•Chapters

•BOF groups

•Escapades

•Boot Camp

•Toastmasters

•HOP

•Events Calendar

•VOW

There are so many good reasons to be an Escapees member, but the one that warms my heart the most is service to others.

Don Dietz, my partner, and I had one Habitat for Humanity (HFH) build under our belts in Yuba City, California, on two straw-bale houses following the 1999 Spring Escapade in Chico. It came as no surprise that all 10 of the participants, including the leaders, were Escapees members.

At the 2000 Goshen, Indiana, Escapade, I was happy to attend a presentation on Habitat for Humanity/RV Care-A-Vanners, entitled "Hand Up, Not a Handout," given by a former Escapees member, Jim Campbell.

He began his presentation by telling his reason for being involved with RV Care-A-Vanners, the RV group working with Habitat for Humanity. After years of work and now retirement, Jim felt he had been given so much during his life that he wanted to give something back.

Next, he gave us the background for the HFH program. I had always thought President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalyn, were the founders. They are major contributors and have participated in many of the builds worldwide; however, this organization was the brainchild of Millard Fuller, a lawyer from Georgia.

The concept
Fuller had earned millions of dollars but felt he had no purpose in life. His wife, Linda, convinced him to leave their rich but unhappy lifestyle and join a commune. They lived in the commune for a while and then traveled.

Everywhere they went they saw many poor families with substandard housing. Fuller had an idea: could he build simple, decent, affordable housing for low-income families? He would accomplish this goal by building alongside the family who would inhabit the house.

Today, the main criteria for a family to qualify for a house is the sweat equity they must put in toward the purchase of their home. This is the concept of "hand up, not a handout." These families have to meet other criteria, too. This may vary among local affiliates, but all applicants must have enough income to make the no-interest 20-year mortgage payments.

Local churches are involved and provide ongoing support to the families. The term "families" has broadened to include a single-parent family, grandparents who are raising their grandchildren, or anyone making up a family unit.

At the presentation, Jim Campbell and his wife, Lois, were asked many questions about what people actually do on a build. They talked about the usual pounding of nails, sheetrock work, getting supplies to the builders, and the continual cleanup process.

Most of the participants bring a bucket of tools, which they label with their names. This could include a nail apron, utility knife, measuring tape, hammer, square, and a pencil. The tools are optional, but having your own tools comes in handy.

Sometimes there is a call for those with electrical and/or plumbing experience. Other times the local affiliate hires out those skilled jobs.

While Don and I were on our build in Yuba City, the leaders asked if anyone had electrical experience. I volunteered Don, who had grown up in the trade with his dad's business but had not wired anything in years. He and Ralph McCartney # 49546, who had learned the trade in the Air Force, wired both straw-bale houses.

They were a little nervous when the city inspector showed up, but their job passed with flying colors. In fact, the inspector complimented them on doing a perfect job, which he said is unusual these days.

Ralph's wife, Shirley, showed me how to pound nails and taught me other skills while we worked as a team.

The accommodations vary from site to site, but most provide electric and water for the two weeks on the build. In Yuba City, we were on the building site. On another build in Pennsylvania, we parked in a church parking lot.

From nil to skill
Many of the women at the presentation were apprehensive about their roles on the builds, but Lois, the presenter's wife, quickly squelched those notions as she described her experiences at the all-women's build in Naples, Florida.

Women builders were sent from the HFH headquarters in Americus, Georgia, to train the women on all phases of building. No men were allowed on the site, but plenty came to watch. The foundation was the only part that had been done before the build. These women had no trouble finding their niches and built the rest of the house, as well as equipping it with appliances and furniture.

I personally can say my building skills have gone from nil to some skill. Whether one is actually building the house, organizing the tools, cleaning up a site, or feeding the crew, the HFH experience is a great self-esteem builder for women.

Since 1983 the dream of Millard and Linda Fuller has mushroomed into 1200 HFH affiliates in 50 states and 100 international affiliates in 44 countries. HFH is the seventh largest home builder in the United States. Everyday there are 34 homes being completed in the world, all with private help and no government aid. These are pretty impressive statistics.

So many times in the last five years of full-time traveling, I have felt blessed with the freedom to do most anything we want. Then a little angel on my shoulder said, "How about fulfilling someone else's dream?" and there was a twinge of guilt about my own selfishness.

In addition to the warm feelings and building self-esteem, one also experiences the sense of accomplishment when building a house for a family in need.

Plans for the future
HFH allows Don and me to build homes for others, combined with the fun of RV travel. This provides our lives with an important balance and a sense of community that is sometimes missing when you do not have a home base, which brings me to propose an exciting idea.

Incredible events happened in 2001 after Don and I formed the Birds of a Feather (BOF) for HFH. Destiny is definitely on our side. We visited HFH headquarters in Americus, Georgia, and laid plans for our partnership between the Care-A-Vanners and the BOF-HFH. To our surprise, we were greeted by Carole Schart #4077. Both she and her husband, Ches, are volunteers for Care-A-Vanners.

One of Carole's ideas was that we visit Escapees Rainbow Parks and SKP Co-Ops on our way to the 2001 Spring Escapade to talk about the new relationship between HFH-BOF and Care-A-Vanners. As a result, 40 couples and several solos signed up. Over 53 Escapees signed up for the HFH-BOF at Escapade, some already involved with HFH, with the majority new to the concept. The Care-A-Vanners' phone was ringing off the hook before Escapade was over. Thrilled with the response, the directors of Care-A-Vanners are planning Escapees HFH-BOF builds.

If you would like to join other Escapees helping those who need a hand up in housing you can do so by joining the HFH-BOF and signing up for the Care-A-Vanners mailing list. Here is how:

To join the HFH-BOF, contact Sally Hedberg and Don Dietz, 213 Rainbow Drive, #11393, Livingston, Texas 77399. While it costs nothing to join, if you would like to receive the newsletter, keeping you posted on HFH-BOF activities, the cost is $5.

Since the Care-A-Vanners schedule all HFH-BOF builds, you will need to sign up with them to be able to sign up for a HFH-BOF build. There is no charge, and you will receive a newsletter telling not just when the HFH-BOF builds are, but also when many other Care-A-Vanner builds are that you can participate in. Simply contact Care-A-Vanners Information Desk, 121 Habitat St., Americus, GA 31709-3498, 800-422-4828, ext. 2446 or e-mail rvinfodesk@hfhi.org.

There is great news coming out of Livingston, Texas, too. As the result of meetings that began in August at Rainbow's End, the Polk County Habitat for Humanity group convened its first meeting of the board of directors on November 15, 2001. Escapees Ray Gearing #22387, Cathie Carr #3, Kay Peterson #1, Ches and Carole Schart #4077, Anita Hickman #41291, Joel Whittemore #18769 and Susie Dunaway #12742 have been instrumental in shepherding this proposed affiliate into existence.