HabiChat

April is Volunteer Appreciation Month and we wanted to kick it off with a podcast celebrating our volunteers! We are joined this episode by Rachel Eldridge (Director of Volunteer Service, Habitat Charlotte Region), Joe Labus (long time construction volunteer), and David Templeman (long time ReStore volunteer) who chat about their favorite parts about being a Habitat Charlotte Region volunteer and why they keep coming back. We love and appreciate each and every one of our volunteers, without them we wouldn't be able to do as much as we do. So THANK YOU!   To learn more about volunteering on a Habitat Charlotte Region construction site, click here! To learn more about volunteering in a Habitat Charlotte Region ReStore, click here! To learn about all the other volunteer opportunities available at Habitat Charlotte Region, click here!

Did you know that the first Women Build ever was done here in Charlotte? 30 years ago in 1991 the women of Habitat Charlotte came together to build a home built entirely by women. Joining us to talk about that experience is the house leader, Mary Olive Johnson, and the at the time Executive Director Susan Sewell.

In this episode, we talk with Kerr Collins, Habitat Charlotte Region's VP of Business Operations, and Ali Summerville, Habitat Charlotte Region's Board Chair, about the newest Habitat Charlotte Region initiative - The Beloved Community. To learn more about The Beloved Community, go to our website - https://www.habitatcltregion.org/beloved-community/. Sign up for our Building Futures Symposium here! Keep up to date with Habitat Charlotte Region by following us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter!

It's the most wonderful time of the year - tax season! Tax season is a time of stress for a lot of people, and for some, it is another reminder that their finances are not where they want them to be. Join Alex Huseman as she talks with Mary Quinn from Common Wealth Charlotte about the best budgeting practices, tax prep services in Charlotte, and more. Resources mentioned in the episode:Community Link NCCharlotte Center for Legal AdvocacyCommon Wealth CharlotteHabitat Charlotte Region's Money Matters Program Follow Habitat Charlotte Region on social media to stay up to date with all our programs and events!Facebook, Instagram, Twitter

Who are the Habitat Young Professionals and what are they doing? Join us as we sit down with Jacki Keating, Vice-Chair of Charlotte Region's Habitat Young Professionals, and Art Goodson, Volunteer Chair with Charlotte Region's Habitat Young Professionals as we chat about what HYP is, what they are working on right now, and Art's retirement plan of RV-ing across the country to volunteer with Habitat affiliates (with a trailer on the back for Jacki). To learn more about Habitat Charlotte Region's Young Professionals, you can check out their website here. You can also follow them on Instagram @hypcharlotte or follow them on Facebook.

Join us as we talk to Sherika Eskridge, Neighborhood Revitalization Coordinator, as we discuss our Critical Home Repair Program and Neighborhood Revitalization Program, as well as the application process for both.  For more information check out the Critical Home Repair page here, and the Neighborhood Revitalization page here!Don't forget to follow us on social media for the most up to date information on our programs and events! Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter!

There are a lot of families out there who are thankful for the work that Habitat is doing to get people into safe decent and affordable homes, and it made me think, who do we thank for coming up with Habitat? Most people think Jimmy Carter started Habitat for Humanity, but it was actually Millard and Linda Fuller. But where did the Fuller’s get the idea for Habitat? That answer is, at a place called Koinonia Farms in Americus, Georgia. Koinonia is a place that doesn’t get talked about much in Habitat’s history, so today I am going to dive into the history of the place that gave birth to the idea of Habitat for Humanity, Koinonia Farms. It will be a short episode, just think of it as a bite-sized holiday treat!

Usually, this time of year Habitat Charlotte Region would be sending groups of volunteers to build side by side with our international Habitat partners, but since COVID has put a halt to international travel, we decided to bring two of our three international partners to us on the podcast! Join Alex as she chats with Bex Oring (Habitat Charlotte Region), Luis Viscarra (Habitat El Salvador), Vanessa Albanez (Habitat El Salvador), and Makensie Brown (Habitat Guatemala) as they talk about how their countries are handling COVID and how COVID has affected their day to day operations. Stay tuned for a future episode with our third international partner, Cambodia, soon!For more information on Habitat El Salvador or Habitat Guatemala follow them on social media!Habitat El Salvador: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, WebsiteHabitat Guatemala: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, WebsiteFor more information on Habitat Charlotte Region's international work, head to our website!

The difference between Habitat for Humanity affiliates and their international parent organization can be confusing sometimes. Especially when I tell you that there are also affiliate support organizations in the mix. Join Alex as she talks to Greg Kirkpatrick, Executive Director of Habitat for Humanity North Carolina, and Sara Thompson, Communications and Program Development Manager for Habitat for Humanity of North Carolina, as they talk about the differences between these types of organizations as well as what is going on with affordable housing within the state of NC.

Have you ever wondered what the ReStores were and why Habitat talks about them so much? Now is your chance! Join Alex as she talks to Caitlin Greenwell (VP of ReStores, Habitat Charlotte Region) about what the ReStores are, why they are so important to the Habitat mission, and what is up with the literal knights in shining armor you can find there.For more information about the Habitat Charlotte Region Restores head to their website, cltregionrestore.org.Follow the Habitat Charlotte Region ReStores on social media! Facebook at facebook.com/CLTregionReStore and Instagram @CLTregionReStore

The podcast has been taken over this week! Instead of Alex hosting, this week Ryan Carter (Advocacy & Outreach Coordinator, Habitat Charlotte Region) invited 3 other Habitat advocacy staff from across the country to discuss COVID, social justice, and local elections. Join Greta Gaetz (Policy & Advocacy Manager, Twin Cities Habitat), Rachel Zeitler (Director of Advocacy, Habitat Wake), and Patrick Sunpanich Habitat Charlotte Region Advocacy Facebook Group10 Ways to be an Affordable Housing VoterHabitat Wake Advocacy PageTwin Cities Habitat AdvocacyElection Resource CenterState Legislative UpdateHabitat for Humanity Greater Los Angles Advocacy

Join Alex as she sits down with author David Docusen to talk about his new book Neighborliness: Finding the beauty of God across dividing lines. They discuss current racial and economic tensions and how taking the step towards having meaningful conversations can cross dividing lines.  To register for the book signing on September 26, 2020 at Julia's Cafe, click here! For more information about Neighborliness and to buy a copy --> neighborliness.comFollow David on social media! Instagram @daviddocusen

This week we have a short but sweet episode for you. Alex is joined by Ryan Carter (Advocacy & Outreach Coordinator, Habitat Charlotte Region), who explains why the 2020 census is so important and why we need everyone to fill it out. For more information on the census (even if you don't live in Mecklenburg County, NC) head to meckcounts2020.com today!

There's no full-length podcast this week, but that is because we are hard at work behind the scenes to update how we do our podcasts! Now there will be 3 podcasts a month instead of 2, and we are super excited for the extra content that we will be able to share with you. We're sorry that we had to skip this week, but by skipping this week we are better able to prep the upcoming episodes!

Join host Alex Huseman, as she talks with Nakia Savage (Director of Family Selection, Habitat Charlotte Region) and Symone Robinson (Homebuyer Education Coordinator, Habitat Charlotte Region) about the new homeownership partner process at Habitat for Humanity of the Charlotte Region. They will talk about the entire process from filling out the online application, through the pre-approval process, sweat equity, education courses, all the way through until a partner gets the keys to their new home. Helpful links from this podcast:To learn more about the new home program at Habitat Charlotte Region, click here!To sign up for updates about when the next application cycle will open, click here!For more information on the Money Matter program, click here!As always, thank you for listening! Please rate and subscribe!

Join Alex as she talks with the Director of Critical Home Repair, Charles Monroe, about the ins and outs of the repair program. They talk about the history of the program at the Habitat Charlotte Region affiliate, how it has evolved, how volunteers can work with the program, and how homeowners can be helped.  If you are interested in learning more about the Critical Home Repair Program at Habitat Charlotte Region, check out our website here! You can also find an application to our repair program here. 

This week we talk to Adam Hunter (Field Manager, Habitat Charlotte Region, Johanna Scogin (Project Manager, Cornerstone Architecture and Interior Design), and Alex Huseman (Events Coordinator, Habitat Charlotte Region) about their AmeriCorps service and how it affected them. They talk about how they heard about AmeriCorps, why they chose to serve, and try to pass on some wisdom to prospective AmeriCorps (like the epic game "Hypothetically If I"). Interested in learning more about AmeriCorps in general? Click here!Want to apply to be an AmeriCorps at Habitat Charlotte Region? Apply Here! For more information about the AmeriCorps program at Habitat Charlotte Region check out our August 2020 HOLA with Crista Ray (Young Adult Engagement Coordinator) here. To see a time lapse of the 30 hour house Adam and Alex talk about you can watch it here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to keep up to date with all the latest events and projects!

It's time to do some myth-busting! Habitat Charlotte Region has been around for 37 years, and in that time we have accquired a few myths that surround us. Join Alex and Habitat Charlotte Region CEO Laura Belcher as they discuss some of the larger myths, such as:Do you need any construction experience to volunteer on a Habitat construction site?What do Habitat construction staff do on-site when volunteers aren't there?Can you buy more than just construction materials at the ReStore?Are Habitat homes given away for free?And so much more! Helpful links:Buy books from Julia's online here!Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter!Ideas for an episode or want to drop me a line? Email podcast@habitatcltregion.org.

Welcome to HabiChat, Habitat Charlotte Region's podcast! We will be posting new episodes every two weeks. Referenced Material:https://nchousing.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/NCH-CountyProfile-Mecklenburg.pdf https://nchousing.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/NCH-CountyProfile-Iredell.pdf  Follow us on Social Media:FacebookTwitterInstagram