Stuffed animals and a tattered backpack on a tiny bed next to a rustic stove and dirty toilet - a scene many impoverished families wake up to every morning when getting ready for work or school - were laid out in a semitrailer truck outside City Hall Monday. In an effort to draw more volunteers and funds, Habitat for Humanity International, its affiliates and Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, a "nonprofit Fortune 500 financial services organization," showed testimonials and exhibited a scene in which a family crowds its children into a tiny, one-room living space with an exposed bathroom and kitchen.
The exhibit was contained inside a semitrailer truck as part of a tour that began at Lakeline Mall on Saturday and stopped at locations across Austin until it reached City Hall Monday. Councilman Raul Alvarez spoke about the city's role in providing affordable housing. Habitat for Humanity operates in more than 100 countries and has 1,700 affiliates.
Michael Willard, Austin Habitat for Humanity executive director, said he believes the collaboration between Habitat for Humanity and Thrivent Financial will help people see the substandard conditions where many families in Austin live.
"A lot of people think they know about [poverty], but a lot really don't," Willard said.
Willard said Habitat for Humanity hopes to build 21 houses in the Austin area next year with support from Thrivent Financial, which will spend $105 million over four years for affordable housing nationally and globally. In its 30-year history, Habitat for Humanity International has never received more financial help from a single organization, according to a statement.
Affiliates of Habitat for Humanity and local communities will determine where new houses and neighborhoods will be built, he said. According to the 1999 U.S. Census report, 12.5 percent of Travis County residents live below the poverty line.
Thrivent Financial hopes to use its funds to help Habitat for Humanity construct an additional 500 houses each year, said Dee Terry, manager of community services at Thrivent Financial. Terry said the two organizations have common characteristics and similar goals.
"We are both faith-based organizations and share a common thread," she said.
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