The rhythmic patter of hammers and the crunch of shovels digging
echoed throughout the site, as men and women worked doggedly in the
morning heat to build houses for low-income families.
Their efforts were arranged through Habitat for Humanity, the
organization that presented six families with the keys to their new
Pacoima homes Saturday.
Among the people scattered around the site were a group of
volunteers wearing vibrant yellow and blue shirts.
Kim Quon, a third-year psychobiology student and the build-day
coordinator for HabitatUCLA, explained the details of the
project’s progress and the importance of the student group
that was revived in 2002.
“We’ve been working here for a year now, the project
itself has been going on much longer,” Quon said. Quon noted
that 20 homes are finished and a total of 56 are projected to
complete the small community of new homes.
Quon is just one of a group of students who volunteer at Habitat
for Humanity sites regularly. She organizes groups of 20 volunteers
and rides for each Saturday and leads crews on-site.
Volunteering with the group is on an availability basis, so
there is no real long-term commitment. No experience is
required.
“It’s pretty basic overall, there is a lot to learn
though,” said Jonathan Lin, a fourth-year political science
and Asian-American studies student who began volunteering with
HabitatUCLA this quarter.
Many volunteers prefer this type of project because of the sense
of accomplishment they get when the homes are finished.
“It is rewarding. At the end of the day you get to see
your work,” Lin said.
Groups of volunteers are welcome to come out and work, and many
student groups on campus take advantage of the regularity and
availability of such an opportunity. Fraternities and sororities
are some of the more common groups.
Other volunteers bring friends to join in.
“I dragged my boyfriend with me,” said Frances Lin,
a third-year history and geography student and volunteer with the
project.
The students and other volunteers working at the Pacoima site
are part of a larger international effort that spans the globe.
According to its Web site, Habitat for Humanity seeks to
“eliminate poverty housing and homelessness from the world,
and make decent shelter a matter of conscience and
action.”
Quon explained that along with housing, Habitat for Humanity
provides coaches to work with the families as a resource and
educate them in budgeting and other issues pertaining to home
ownership.
Habitat for Humanity is a non-profit organization, not a
giveaway program.
Their efforts are made possible through donations of materials,
money and land.
Homeowners are required to make the down payment and pay for
their houses, in addition to volunteering 500 hours of “sweat
equity” to the organization’s cause.
Ernie Menendez, whose family received a new home Saturday, said
he and his family completed their hours together. Many recipients
log hours working on the houses that they plan to buy.
Menendez’s father applied for a home through Habitat for
Humanity five years ago because their apartment was too small.
Menendez shared a room with his sister while they were both growing
up and needed their own space.
His family resonated with excitement at the ceremony, as the day
they would walk through their front door had finally come.
“It was my parents’ dream to own a home,”
Menendez said.
The home comes at a perfect time for Menendez, as he is getting
ready to attend California State University, Northridge next
fall.
The other families were just as exuberant and thankful, as
dreams were realized throughout the dedication.
Chairs seating onlookers were packed into garages in order to
accommodate the proud volunteers and members of the community
welcoming their new neighbors.