Earth Day with Habitat for Humanity

Happy Earth Day everyone! April 22nd marks the day when people across the world pause to think about how we can better treat the planet. Here at Habitat we are using the day to increase awareness of our environmental initiatives. Not only do we try to build affordable homes in an environmentally friendly way, but we also run the Habitat ReStore which has diverted over 200 tons of usable materials from our local landfills.

Three ways to Celebrate Earth Day with Habitat for Humanity:

Volunteer Orientation: Saturday, 4/23 at 10am at the Habitat ReStore. Learn how you can volunteer and help Habitat keep tons of usable materials out of our landfills.

Earth Day Work Day: Plant trees and provide minor exterior home repairs during Habitat’s “A Brush with Kindness” project at a house in Goleta from 9-4pm. Register for this workday at www.sbhabitat.org

ReStore Workshop: In honor of Earth Day we will be hosting a workshop throughout the day on Saturday and explore creative ways to reuse recycled materials found in the ReStore. Examples include turning old sinks, shutters or mailboxes into flower planters and making chicken feeders out of recycled plastic tubing.

 

Creative vertical garden made from an old window shutter.

Mailbox and drawer flower planters.

Toilet turned flower planter.

Building materials being turned into flowerpots.

Be sure to visit the ReStore on April 23rd to see these examples and more!

Creating Ripples

"I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples." — Mother Teresa

Starbucks Volunteers offer A Brush with Kindness

This month Habitat for Humanity of SSBC will complete our second A Brush with Kindness home repair. Over the course of three work days volunteers will help with the exterior repairs for a low-income homeowner in Goleta. Starbucks has graciously offered to sponsor this home repair and will sent a crew of 15 volunteers out to the site today today. On Saturday, April 23rd Goleta Valley Beautiful will be on site to help plant trees at the home.   

A Brush with Kindness (ABWK) is a program that assists low-income families in repairing their homes so they can continue to live in a safe, decent home. ABWK complements our home building program and allows our affiliate to provide safe and decent housing to a greater number of people in Santa Barbara.

We still need volunteers on Saturday, April 23rd from noon to 4pm to help plant trees and repair fences. If you are available please sign up online or call our office at 805-692-2226.  
 

The excellent Starbucks volunteers

Just in time for Earth Day

Did you know that the automobile is the most heavily recycled consumer product? Each year the steel industry recycles more than 14 million tons of steel from junk cars and end-of-life vehicles. This is equivalent to nearly 13.5 million new automobiles!

Junk cars are typically hauled to auto salvage yards, where reusable car parts are removed along with other items, like batteries, tires and fluids. Recycled automobiles enter the shredding process in which iron and steel are magnetically separated from the other materials and salvaged. Reclaimed iron and steel is shipped to be recycled to produce new steel.

HFHI Cars for Homes

By donating a junk car to Habitat for Humanity’s Cars for Homes™ car donation program, you help save energy and natural resources with the added benefit of supporting your local Habitat for Humanity affiliate’s efforts to eliminate poverty housing and homelessness within your community. [Be sure to designate Southern Santa Barbara County as your local affiliate!]

Donate vehicles online or call (877) 277-HFHI (4344) toll free to help Habitat recycle a junk car, truck, boat, motorcycle or RV into decent, affordable housing. Plus, when you donate your car, your vehicle donation may be eligible for tax deduction purposes if you itemize! (Consult the IRS or your tax adviser for details.) efforts to eliminate poverty housing and homelessness within your community.

Courtesy of Habitat for Humanity International. 

What We Build.

There is a great need for affordable housing in Santa Barbara. Here on the beautiful Central Coast of California, wage rates have not kept pace with the skyrocketing costs of housing. For low income families homeownership is a very distant dream. Low-income working families earning between $30,000 to $50,000 a year often spend more than half of their income on housing and often these families are forced to live in overcrowded apartments or unconverted garages, many of which do not meet minimum health and safety standards. 

At Habitat for Humanity of Southern Santa Barbara County we are working to eliminate substandard housing in our community. We provide homes for those who often cannot afford rent. In 2008, the average monthly mortgage payment for a Habitat home in Santa Barbara was $480, far less than the average rental price at the time which was $1,600. By providing safe, decent, affordable homes, Habitat opens a door for low-income families, allowing them the opportunity for increased self-esteem and self-reliance. With the stability of a permanent home, families can devote increased attention to jobs, education, and health.

Habitat for Humanity International premiered this fantastic video at last month's National Affiliate Conference in Atlanta. It sums up all of the above and we hope you'll be as moved by the video as we were. It answers the question: What We Build?

April's A Brush with Kindness home repair

This April Habitat for Humanity's A Brush with Kindness home repair project will take place in Goleta. We're thrilled to have an opportunity to help repair the exterior of a home in our own backyard (the Habitat office and ReStore are both located in Goleta). 

In honor of Earth Day on April 22nd, Habitat for Humanity of Southern Santa Barbara county will be planting trees and repairing the fence at the Goleta A Brush with Kindness project on Saturday, April 23rd from noon to 4pm. We need volunteers to help with this project. If you're interested in volunteering your time, please sign up online.

We had over 100 volunteers help with our last A Brush with Kindness project (read more about it here). It's a wonderful opportunity to give back to the community and see your hard work make a tangible difference to the lives of others. We hope you'll join us on April 23rd.