Habitat for Humanity has been praised through the years as an active force and leader in international volunteer organizations, with Boston College groups frequently joining its efforts. As a nonprofit, ecumenical Christian housing ministry, Habitat seeks to eliminate poverty worldwide and prides itself on providing housing for families in need. Functioning solely on volunteer labor and donations, the organization has become extremely well-known with volunteer membership increasing dramatically within the past five years.
Only recently has Habitat come under scrutiny in its response to disaster-affected regions of the United States following Hurricane Katrina - an area that is also the focus of the Appalachia program.
Immediately following the 2004 tsunami that swept clean areas of Indonesia and Thailand, Habitat for Humanity was on the scene to provide assistance. The organization was able to accumulate enough volunteers to repair and rebuild nearly 8,500 damaged homes. This amazingly high statistic seemed to resonate back to the United States, as Habitat's disaster-relief program was hailed as a success.
Once Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast in 2005, Habitat once again sent volunteers to the region. Nearly one and a half years have passed, however, and the organization is currently being criticized for low numbers of rebuilt houses. Katrina left nearly 250,000 homes destroyed. After the storm, Habitat had 50,000 volunteers in the region and a $127 million budget. To this day, 10 homes have been constructed in Bay St. Louis, Mo., 36 in New Orleans, La., and 416 more scattered along the entire coast, totaling around only 702 once current construction is complete.
Having spent $61.5 million of their budget, Habitat plans on getting 1,000 more houses completed by August. After that, it plans to build 1,000 more. This statistic still falls short of the work achieved following the tsunami.
With spring break only a week away, BC's own Appalachia volunteers are preparing three service trips to the Gulf Coast region to hopefully aid not just Habitat for Humanity, but other volunteer organizations still making progress in the area. One group is going to New Orleans, La.; one to Hattiesburg, Miss.; and one to Pass Christian, Miss., totaling about 60 volunteers. Areas such as New Orleans and Pass Christian are still in dire need of relief work including tree and debris removal. In these areas, Appalachia will be working with Corpus Christi, another volunteer organization.
Appalachia also did work in the Gulf Coast last year. Melissa Gambatese, leader of the Pass Christian trip and A&S '07 said, "The tasks included gutting houses that had been flooded in New Orleans and a number of projects in Biloxi, Miss., including working in conjunction with HandsOnUSA and Persevere Volunteers clearing lots, gutting houses, administering a community redevelopment survey to residents of trailer parks in the eastern part of the city, and some physical work in Pass Christian."
Even though BC is not necessarily affiliated with Habitat, Appalachia will be working with it in Hattiesburg this year. "Appalachia is not a chapter of Habitat for Humanity. Instead we participate in what Habitat calls 'Collegiate Challenge.' We enter into a pool of other schools willing to dedicate volunteers for a week at certain sites across America, and we are set up with churches or community centers, etc. for shelter, and work sites that need volunteers," said Gambatese.
Unlike the other Gulf Coast regions, Hattiesburg received less damage and therefore is approaching the construction stage. "Hattiesburg got a lot of interest in terms of constructing new housing, and this year [Habitat] is building six new houses which is amazing. We are happy to be a part of it," said Tammy Liddell, Campus Ministry Faculty Advisor.
One difficulty Appalachia has had to face in these regions is the fact that the program provides mostly nonskilled labor. It will be more difficult in upcoming years for the program to continue building in these areas since most volunteers are unfamiliar with aspects of construction. As of right now, the only significant work Appalachia can do is disaster-relief in areas that are still extremely disheveled.
Even though critics are coming down hard on Habitat's progress, Liddell believes theses claims to be unjustifiable. "It's almost provocative that people believe Habitat's not doing its job. It is trying to retain its integrity. It's not just building and handing out homes, Habitat builds homeownership which takes time."
Liddell also believes that one major setback is the fact that in so many regions, entire city infrastructures have been damaged. Not only does this mean more damage has been inflicted upon these cities, but the systems of legislation and bureaucracy have been practically destroyed. These towns do not have the revenue or organization to construct new homes.
Gambatese noticed similar problems when she visited the region last year. "One of the biggest constraints I witnessed in Pass Christian over the summer was a lack of local government support. Half of the residents of Pass Christian had fled after the storm, and the local government was doing little in the ways of relief for the community."
One possibility for why construction was so efficient in Indonesia in 2004 was that there was less bureaucracy and government regulation. Volunteers had a lot of control in deciding where and what kind of houses to build.
Even though the rebuilding process is slow, many volunteers believe Habitat and other similar organizations are doing the best they possibly can. "I believe that considering the situation, including the slowing stream of volunteers and donations and overall support for the rebuilding effort in the Gulf Coast region, Habitat for Humanity has accomplished commendable goals," said Gambatese. "The need for houses will be present for years to come, and so will Habitat for Humanity. As for Appalachia, I believe that its presence in the Gulf Coast region has made a difference."
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