HUNDREDS OF LOCAL STUDENTS TAKE ON AFFORDABLE HOUSING CRISIS THIS WEEK

HUNDREDS OF LOCAL STUDENTS TAKE ON AFFORDABLE HOUSING CRISIS DURING HABITAT FOR HUMANITY’S ACT! SPEAK! BUILD! WEEK

Students Focus on Educating Community to Help Build Affordable Homes for Local Families

Los Angeles, CA – March 31, 2008: Today, hundreds of young people from more than 25 schools and youth organizations in Greater Los Angeles will embark on a campaign to tackle the affordable housing crisis. ACT! SPEAK! BUILD! Week unites local students who partner with Habitat for Humanity of Greater Los Angeles to plan and host a wide range of student-initiated events focused on ending poverty housing. Their efforts will be part of a worldwide Habitat for Humanity initiative through which thousands of young volunteers will educate themselves and their communities about the need for affordable housing and move people to social action.


READ ENTIRE PRESS RELEASE

Ryan Braun: Cover Model & Habitat Hero

Do you remember when Ryan Braun donated his National League Baseball Rookie of the Year bonus to Habitat for Humanity??? We certainly do and we love him.

He made an impression on all of us when he helped us build during the Jimmy Carter Work Project too. So when the new Sports Illustrated hit the stands this week, we were thrilled to see our favorite player is also a favorite among fans (and sports experts!)

Way to go Ryan! Can't wait to build with you again.

Youth United & Easter Bunny Attract A Crowd at the L.A. Zoo Where Local Kids Helped to Raise over $200

Our Youth United team was out at Big Bunny's Spring Fling at the Los Angeles Zoo this past weekend where, along with the Easter Bunny, we got to meet some exceptional kids. Zoo guests of all ages participate in our Nickel Toss to benefit our Nickels for Nails program and we raised over $200.

Young Habitat for Humanity supporters from ages 5-25 are raising money to help give a hardworking family a simple, decent place to live! At the L.A. Zoo on Saturday, kids tossed nickels into paint buckets to support the "Nickels for Nails" fundraising initiative. These kids raised almost $200 and won prizes when they successfully launched a nickel into one of the buckets.

Local students participating in Nickels for Nails are working to raise enough money to fund a new Habitat for Humanity home in the City of Lynwood - which will also be built by youth ages 16-25.

You can read about the Big Bunny Spring Fling here and to find out more about how you and your school can participate in the Nickels for Nails program, contact us:

Habitat for Humanity Youth Programs

310-323-4663

Compton Best Buy helping to Build a Greater Los Angeles

Best Buy in Compton is committed to making their community better. They just donated a 42 inch flat-screen TV to Habitat for Humanity Greater Los Angeles. This TV will be a great asset to the Housing Center for Excellence, which is set to open soon. The Housing Center will offer classes to people in the community, about building, buying homes, becoming a part of Habitat for Humanity, and More! Best Buy's donation will help the Housing Center for Excellence use video for training. Thank you Best Buy for your generous donation!

Come Volunteer During the Week - Our Partner Families Need your Help

We have a serious need for volunteers each Tuesday through Friday for the next few weeks to help our families move into their homes as soon as possible.

We need 25 people each day, 5 people on each "A Brush With Kindness" project throughout Los Angeles and also on our build sites in Lynwood, San Pedro and Vermont.

If building is not your thing but you have great people skills why not volunteer in our Home Improvement Store?

Once these are completed we will still need 5-10 people a day until we start volunteer construction on our two new neighborhoods. When that begins we’ll be looking for at least 25 people again each day. The weather is warming up and the days are longer - 2 great reasons to come build with us besides the obvious of making a difference!

If you or someone you know is interested in volunteering with Habitat for Humanity please let us know and come join us in the next few weeks. To sign up for weekday volunteer opportunities visit our website and follow the directions below.

PLEASE SIGN UP ONLINE - Then bring forms to the site on the day you volunteer

Visit our Website
Click on the Volunteer link
Then click on the Volunteer Up icon.
To register yourself go to Individual Registration at the bottom of the page. This will enable you to create a username, password, and schedule yourself according to our online calendar.

Email us about individual or group volunteer opportunities. Once you build with us, you're family!

WE ARE BREAKING GROUND ON 3 NEW HOMES NEXT WEEK! ONE WILL BE ENTIRELY FUNDED AND BUILT BY LOCAL STUDENTS

Next Saturday, March 22 we will be in the City of Lynwood, along with the Mayor and other distinguished guests to celebrate the beginning of 3 new homes! Can you believe it? This is Los Angeles, a city ranked LAST in housing affordabity in the entire U.S. and we are building 3 more affordable homes. And even more impressive is the fact that one of the new homes will be funded and built by local students as part of our Youth United program!

Here are the detials:

Habitat for Humanity of Greater L.A. Groundbreaking Ceremony
City of Lynwood
Saturday, March 22
10 am to 12 pm

You can read the entire media alert here.

California Creates Cabinet Post to Manage Volunteers

Photo: Over 2,000 people responded to a 2007 oil spill in San Francisco Bay, but many could not help.

LOS ANGELES — California is a state with frequent natural disasters and vast numbers of people who want to help. But Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger says a recent oil spill in San Francisco Bay helped demonstrate that “volunteerism can be moved a notch.”

To that end, Mr. Schwarzenegger is creating a cabinet-level office for volunteer management, which his administration says is the first such state cabinet position in the country. He is scheduled to announce the move on Tuesday in Los Angeles.

Under the change, the governor’s commission for volunteerism, California Volunteers, will maintain its staffing and budget. But its executive director will gain expanded duties as a cabinet secretary, playing a role in disaster-related planning and response efforts and coordinating volunteers at disaster sites.

The office will also manage donations that flow into the state for disaster relief, a responsibility now held by the state’s Office of Emergency Response. It is the first time a governor’s commission overseeing federal money to manage volunteers — panels required by law since 1993 — has been elevated to a cabinet role.

READ THE ENTIRE NEW YORK TIMES ARTICLE HERE

California Creates Cabinet Post to B

High School Student, Natalie Millman, plays viola to help Habitat for Humanity

Natalie Millman a student at La Serna High School in Whittier California a Youth United volunteer, and Habitat for Humanity advocate wrote the following about why she believes in Habitat for Humanity of Greater Los Angeles.

The people in my classes cannot understand why I often spend my lunch period standing in the center of the school courtyard, playing my fingers raw on my viola. They might notice the growing pile of loose change in my case, or the little yellow sign I present which reads "Donate to Habitat for Humanity!", but they remain sadly puzzled. It makes sense to me, to devote every moment I can spare to make a difference.

I am certain there are much more creative ways to raise money for Habitat than that which I have utilized, playing viola for the loose nickels and quarters of passersby. Nevertheless, one of the talents I best utilize is the production of music. I could do other thing like run a marathon or host a dance, and I have done them before, but I prefer instead to stand in a noticeable place and play my heart out to whoever cares to be passing by at the time. I can get up to thirty dollars in an hour, if the weather is sunny.

My school's police representative, Officer Drylie, likes to listen when I play selections from the Beatles, BJ Thomas, or Simon and Garfunkel; he also claims to be going broke because of me. Mr. Stott, my orchestra director, has given me five dollars at one time after a difficult rendition of Mozart's Rondo Alla Turca. When the school librarian passes, I play one of my favorite old songs, one of which being 'Que Sera Sera.' A friend of mine requests the 'My Heart Will Go On' theme from Titanic every time I play, and a classmate from French class finds particular amusement when I perform 'The Bear Necessities' from The Jungle Book. My repertoire varies widely, as do my listeners.

I derive a large amount of satisfaction from my efforts. I believe that as I am making the world more pleasant, dually for my listeners and for the people Habitat helps, while doing something I love, balance is added to my life, and I am inspired to do even more. Why waste a perfectly capable life from making a difference in the lives of those who need help?



If you would like to hear some of Natalie's music, visit her myspace page, or her artist website