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Middle States Region Reaches Milestone
Regional director Joe Gatlin expects the Middle States to achieve the 5,000-house milestone early this fall. He says the meaning of this accomplishment depends on one’s perspective. “If we could get up high enough to see all of the 701,874 square miles of Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana, this new house would make the haystack itself look like a needle,” he says. “Or, if for the last 25 years we had concentrated all of this effort in one of our larger mid-sized cities, we could have eliminated poverty housing in one location. And now we would be ready to turn our attention to the 249 other cities and towns we serve with a combined population of more than 26 million.”
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On the other hand, Gatlin draws a parallel between the region’s accomplishment and a parable from the Bible. In the parable, 5,000 hungry people are fed from just two fish and five loaves, leaving 12 baskets of food left over. The position of plenty can be a starting point for further ministry, he says. “Now, rather than just five barley loaves and two fish, we can start with 12 basketfuls,” he says. “Today, rather than just two or three partners, we have thousands, even tens of thousands of Habitat partners. In fulfillment of the early vision of Habitat, it is beginning to dawn on the collective conscience of the public that poverty housing is unconscionable. We are ready to serve up another 25 years that will dwarf the accomplishments of the first.”
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Latin America / Caribbean Builds 35,000th Habitat House
The Latin America/Caribbean region’s 35,000th house was dedicated on Easter morning in Tres Rios, Brazil, near Rio de Janeiro. Area director Torre Nelson says this milestone is both a symbol of Habitat’s leadership in housing issues there and an opportunity for further expansion.
“We need to focus on finding ways to partner with other organizations that are already in communities, so we can draw on each other’s strengths,” he says. “At the same time, we want the growth to be controlled. It’s not just about house numbers. There should be a solid foundation of leadership, Habitat values and a methodology that’s been proven to work.
“This is a celebration of what the poor can do in a community,” he says.
—Rebekah Graydon
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Areawide House Totals
U.S./Middle States (Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas): 5,000
U.S./Midwest (Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin): 4,000
Africa/Middle East: 20,000
Latin America/Caribbean: 35,000
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