Achievements
When the 200,000th Habitat for Humanity house is completed in 2005, about 1 million people will be living in Habitat homes. While house numbers help measure the work, the families served and the lives touched are how Habitat for Humanity gauges its true value.
It is important, of course, that a family have a secure, affordable place to live — a place where children aren’t ashamed to bring their friends. But the benefits of good housing extend well beyond that. Without the worries of get-by living in a decrepit shack, rundown apartment, or leaky hut, a family’s health improves, children’s grades go up, and parents often return to school or have the confidence to seek better employment. Tax rolls benefit; neighborhoods and entire communities improve.
The partnership between future homeowners and Habitat volunteers also brings some remarkable results. In Northern Ireland, for example, Habitat for Humanity projects have united Catholics and Protestants, breaking down longtime barriers. In South Africa, where apartheid divided the races for generations, blacks and whites now work side by side building Habitat homes..
