National League Rookie of the Year Ryan Braun Gifted His Bonus Money to Habitat Following His Experience as a House Leader at 2007 JCWP

Last fall when thousands of volunteers joined President Jimmy Carter & Habitat for Humanity of Greater Los Angeles to build 100 homes thoughout the community, one volunteer was significantly moved.



Ryan Braun was an Honorary House Leader during the JCWP and for those of you who don't know the name, Braun plays for the Milwaukee Brewers and was voted National League Rookie of the Year last year in 2007!



When Braun built with us last fall, he pledged he'd donate his Rookie of the Year bonus money to Habitat so we could further our mission and this week he did just that. You can read the official press release here.



We just wanted to say to Ryan, on behalf of all our current and future partner families, THANK YOU!

Still riding the momentum

Habitat for Humanity Los Angeles is still riding the wave of momentum that the JCWP 2007 gave us, Even though the 2008 JCWP (Now called the Jimmy AND Rosalyn Carter Work Project) in the gulf is right around the corner! The San Pedro and Vermont Village homes should be completed by the end of February, when a block party is planned for the new residents and their neighbors! Stay tuned for more information about that! Also, if you want to be part of the next JRCWP, check out their site for more info.

We also found a great blog by one of the Jimmy Carter Work Project volunteers from Singapore! Check out her awesome blog and pictures here!

More Hometown Praise for a JCWP Volunteer

3000 volunteers came to Los Angeles last fall to build with us and many are receiving praise and exposure in their hometowns, we love it!

Meet Chuck Mano in Racine's Journal Times:

People You Should Know: Chuck Mano
Saturday, January 5, 2008 10:20 PM CST

Name: Chuck Mano
Age: 38
Personal/family: Married to Kim for 12 years.
Three children: Michaela 10, Zachary 8, Samantha 4
Hobbies/interests: Camping, hunting, ATV riding

Chuck Mano Occupation: Fence contractorVolunteer service: Local Chapter of the American Fence Association, Haban Hitting Center, Habitat for Humanity. I also recently donated time and a kennel for Bones, our Mount Pleasant K-9 unit. Anyone who truly needs help I will go out of my way to assist. Every year I donate to Charlie French’s neighborhood watchprogram. Kids from other states join their churches and come to Racine to rehab homes.

Recent accomplishment: Participated in the 2007 Jimmy Carter Work Project in Los Angeles. Volunteers from all over the world helped Habitat for Humanity build homes for the needy in Los Angeles.

Read More>>

A Very Special Volunteer - Read About JR Williams in his Hometown Newspaper

THE LIFE A HOUSE BUILT

JR Williams' escape from poverty started 19 years ago in a Habitat home
The life a house built JR Williams' escape from poverty started 19 years ago in a Habitat home
By Elizabeth Leland

JR Williams looked like just another volunteer taking time from his job at a brokerage firm to help build a Habitat for Humanity house.

He joined the Jimmy Carter Work Project in Los Angeles six weeks ago for many of the same humanitarian reasons as other volunteers, but Williams had one more reason: He once lived in a Habitat house.

READ THE WHOLE STORY

IT'S NOT TOO LATE TO BE A PART OF HABITAT'S 2007 JIMMY CARTER WORK PROJECT

That's right, the crowds, the news cameras and former president Jimmy Carter may be gone, but there is still a great deal of work to complete so that our 30 Habitat partner families can move into their new homes.

Habitat for Humanity of Greater Los Angeles need skilled workers and craftsmen to help us with plumbing, electrical and more. Please volunteer now by calling our office at 310-323-4663 or emailing volunteers@habitatla.org.

We also need non-trained volunteers too! There is much to do by way of painting, landscaping and more. You've never had so much fun swinging a hammer!

All help is welcome.

What can you expect when you volunteer? Smiles. Lots and lots of smiles. You'll arrive and get a safety briefing, meet your crew leaders and be assigned to a home/job. We promise you'll leave with a feeling you can't shake, it's called Habititis and it's contageous.

Please call or email us now to volunteer. For more info, please visit our website.

Veteran JCWP builder Tom, shares his wisdom with newbies!

Tom Dickinson was the 6A house leader at the San Pedro site whose advice to people wanting to get involved with JCWP is: "just come, get involved. You don’t need the know-how!" Tom is a Habitat For Humanity veteran who started volunteering for the Jimmy Carter Work Project in 1992 in DC; this years project was his sixteenth. Tom currently lives in Springfield, Virginia and volunteers with the Habitat affiliate there.
Tom’s favorite part of each Jimmy Carter Work Project is taking a quiet moment on a roof when all of the work is completed to survey the area. He said that being a small part of the end result and seeing a big sea of houses and knowing that he is helping towards changing people’s lives is what makes the biggest impact on him.

Today a Publicist, Tomorrow a Builder!

This was my first Jimmy Carter Work Project, and I can hardly believe it’s already over. What a week!

Although my work at JCWP was focused on external outreach about the project to media and the community, being immersed in the positive nature and attitudes of the nearly 2,200 volunteers was an experience I will never forget. And, I can’t wait to go pick up a hammer and a paint brush at a Habitat build in the future.

Ever the publicist, I cannot help but mention some of the highlights from the week on the media side:
o CNN “American Morning”
o Reuters wire story
o NPR story (people are still talking about this one!)
o Los Angeles Times story with photographs
o Broadcast coverage by every local station in Los Angeles throughout the week, sometimes multiple stories
o Stories in communities newspapers from the Daily Breeze to the Wave
o AP wire pick-up of eight photos
o Live remote newscasts by KCAL-TV and KCBS-TV in Los Angeles
o An unbelievably successful satellite media tour
o And, anticipated coverage by many more newspapers

Thank you to all the families, volunteers and Habitat for Humanity employees for putting together an amazing event that made a very positive impact on the community in Los Angeles and made for a fabulous way to highlight the organization.