The Cooke Family
North Florida volunteers hand down Habitat for Humanity as a cherished family tradition

Katherine Cooke doesn't really remember a time before she knew about Habitat for Humanity. What she does remember is a time when she was too young to join her parents on a building project. "They took me to see a blitz build one day," says the newly ordained minister and Mississippi resident. "I'd taken water to the workers with my mom. I saw people painting, and that's what I wanted to do."

Katherine's parents, Hamilton and Genie, attended the earliest meetings of Habitat for Humanity of Jacksonville, the affiliate in their north Florida hometown. Hamilton's law firm put together the legal papers of incorporation and shepherded each house closing, a task he and his associates oversee to this day. Genie joined the family selection committee, scheduling interviews with prospective partner families after long days in the classroom as a teacher. The Cookes' most lasting contribution, though, may have been the way they talked about Habitat at home.

"My wife and I just felt so strongly about the concept," says Hamilton. "This isn't just a feel-good program; there's a definite mission involved. And it's one I wanted my family to be a part of." Katherine and her older brother, Thurston, both say they remember their parents' joy on those days that Hamilton came home talking about the deed he had just presented to a Habitat homeowner. "I just remember them being really excited about it all," says Katherine, "and feeling excited about it myself as well."

The closings were genuine occasions for the Cooke family. "They were almost love fests," Hamilton recalls. "Lots of tears and joy. We would walk out feeling that something special was definitely going on. I am sure that the children simply heard a lot of that as they were growing up."

"A Lot of my interest in affordable housing and community development did grow out of experiences with Habitat, absolutely." --Thurston Cooke

They did--and it made a lasting impression. Both Cooke children found themselves increasingly caught up in their parents' enthusiasm, so much so that when they left home, they didn't leave Habitat behind.

Katherine and Thurston Cooke each volunteered during their student days at North Carolina's Davidson College. Later, when Katherine traveled to New Jersey to attend seminary, she gave her time to the Trenton-area Habitat for Humanity. For several years, Thurston worked with Charlotte 3 on 3, an annual basketball tournament whose proceeds benefited the Charlotte affiliate. He also has spent time working on Charlotte and Atlanta metro-area work sites for Habitat.

Thurston credits all of these experiences with helping to define his career path. He currently serves as a real estate developer in Bank of America's Atlanta offices, focusing on multi-family rental housing for low- and moderate-income families. "A lot of my interest in affordable housing and community development did grow out of experiences with Habitat, absolutely," he says. "I sort of, in some ways, consider myself doing it 9 to 5, just in a different setting."

Of all her many Habitat memories, Katherine says her favorite is the day just a few years ago that she spent hanging siding with her parents. "The homeowner was working on that side of the house with all of us," she says. "And she just thought that was the greatest thing. The other people on the site were calling my parents 'Mom' and 'Dad.' They were like, 'Hey, Mom, will you bring me a hammer?' and 'Hey, Dad, what's going on?' Everybody kind of got into that."

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