Gene Anderson
Gene Anderson is easy to spot on the construction site - look for him in a faded "Build-A-Thon 1996" t-shirt. His belief that no one in the world should have to live in sub-standard housing has motivated his continuous involvement with us over the past twelve years. Gene began his involvement on the construction site, but his skills and experience in other fields were soon put to use as well. A website designer by trade, Gene has provided countless hours of design support on our website since 1999. This past fall, when HEB learned that our affiliate had been selected to receive a Thrivent Builds sponsorship, HEB staff immediately nominated Gene to serve as the Chapter Specialist. As Specialist, Gene serves as our team captain, outreaching to Lutheran communities and coordinating their volunteer and fundraising participation in the project. The Thrivent Builds house kicked-off during the Build-A-Thon, and Gene volunteered during all four days of the event. Gene and his wife, Katarina, raised over $3,000 to support construction costs of the houses. Thank you, Gene, for your tremendous contributions to Habitat East Bay!
Please tell us about yourself. What do you like to do with your time when not vounteering with Habitat?
I volunteer with a number of Bay Area non-profits including Oakland Firefighters Random Acts and the Red Cross, and I work at my church running the sound and helping design the contemporary worship services. I also enjoy spending time with my wife, photographing nature, traveling, and of course, working on our own home. With the skills I've learned working with Habitat East Bay over the years, I designed and built an addition to our house. Next up is expanding and remodeling the kitchen.
How did you begin volunteering for Habitat for Humanity?
I first learned about Habitat for Humanity from one of the home improvement shows on PBS, and so I started volunteering with Habitat East Bay to learn more about working with my hands. But after traveling in southern Africa and seeing the enormous need for adequate housing there, it opened my eyes to the great need for it in the U.S. and right here in the Bay Area.
"Seeing the enormous need for adequate housing [in Africa] opened my eyes to the great need for it in the U.S. and right here in the Bay Area."
Describe a favorite experience you have volunteering with Habitat?
Nothing compares with the dedication ceremonies, watching the homeowners and their families get the keys to their new homes.
What motivates you to continue to volunteer with Habitat?
The belief that no one in the world should have to live in sub-standard housing. Regardless of your favorite cause, whether the enviroment, human rights, children's health, world peace, education or whatever -- they're all dependent on people having food & water and a safe, decent place to live.
Habitat East Bay is also a great bunch of people to work, laugh and learn with, so it's hard to beat doing something that's making a difference, has a great work environment, and teaches you along the way. As much as I've given to Habitat East Bay over the years, I feel like I've gotten a lot more back.
"I’ve been working with Gene for nearly ten years now. He is a fantastic volunteer, always willing to help Habitat. He works on the construction site, recruits volunteers from his faith community, is a generous donor, and has helped skillfully navigate us through many website technical difficulties."
--- Krysta Morgenthaler, Director of Development
Tell us about your Thrivent Builds participation and what excites you about that project.
Thrivent Builds is a partnership between Thrivent Financial for Lutherans and Habitat for Humanity. It's made Thrivent Financial into the biggest sponsor of Habitat ever. What's exciting is not just the money that Thrivent is putting into Habitat (65% of the cost of the Thrivent Builds house), but the goal is to get Lutherans more involved in their communities by donating and volunteering more.
My job is to help coordinate between Thrivent Financial, Habitat East Bay, and Lutheran churches in our community and get Lutherans involved. So far we're doing great -- 60% of the volunteer hours on the Thrivent Builds house at the Build-A-Thon were contributed by Lutherans.
What are plans with us in the future?
As long as there's still a need for decent, affordable housing, I'll be volunteering with Habitat.
