LaTonya Phillips: Transforming Lives with Habitat for Humanity | EP 48

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Well, thank you all for tuning
in to the Carolina Business

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Leaders Podcast where we share
the stories of local business

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leaders and impact makers who
are community focused and deeply

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rooted in the Carolinas.
Today's guest is Latonya

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Phillips, President and CEO of
Habitat for Humanity of

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Greenville County and a recent
honoree as one of Greenville

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Business Magazine's Women in
Business for 2025.

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Latonya, thank you so much for
joining.

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Us, yes, Thank you all for
having me.

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Glad to be here.
So before we get started, I do

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want to mention a story from
probably like, no, Yeah,

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December, November of last year.
So almost a year ago when we

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were first starting this
podcast, Julia Hernandez was one

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of the guys that really helped
us launch this thing.

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And he invited me to a chamber
event, which your husband, the

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Greenville Chamber, and he was
unable to make it that night.

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So he's like, hey, you can come,
but I can't make it.

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So have at it.
And I'm just kind of OK, I don't

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know anyone here and started to
mingle.

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Met a couple of our first guests
through that event.

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And you were there and you were
introduced as a CEO for Habitat

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for Humanity at the very end of
the event.

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And I was like, oh, I want to
find her.

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I want to network with her,
invite her on the podcast.

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But I didn't get the chance to.
But now Fast forward a year

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later, we have you finally on
the podcast so well and and.

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Kudos to you because you may not
have wanted to.

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My point was all over the place.
Got you.

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Yeah.
Well, as a president and CEO for

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Habitat for Humanity, can you
walk us through just what is

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your mission with the
organization and some of the

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some of the drives that y'all
have and are putting together

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here in our county?
Yeah, so the mission is is

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pretty simple.
It's a mission that is not only

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our local affiliate mission, but
it's also the international

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mission.
And that is putting God's love

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into action by bringing people
together to build homes, hope

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and community.
Pretty simple.

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The vision is we believe that
everyone has a decent place to

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live, network, decent travels
internationally because we are

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international organization with,
you know, with the federation of

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affiliates.
And so we all operate or I would

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say most of us operate, if not
100% operate from that mission

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and vision statement.
And decent can be a little bit

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confusing to some because here
in the US, right, we think

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decent, right?
Very.

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Subjective.
National, it is an international

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organization and so decent means
it really kind of travels across

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everything that we do.
And so if we could look at it

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from that perspective, it does
have promise.

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Nice.
Very good.

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So we obviously did some
research on you before today.

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Now you have a master's in HR
development from Clemson, which

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go Tigers.
We went to Clemson background

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and corporate training.
You've worked in healthcare,

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banking, a bunch of different
roles.

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So how was it transitioning from
your background and roles you

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were into now leading a
nonprofit?

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Yeah, so wonderful question.
I'd like to take you back when I

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was doing healthcare.
Healthcare and and banking as

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well are all professions where
you're caring for someone.

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Or very people focused, yes.
People focused and so when I

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talked to my dad, who reminds me
of who I was at 5, he said

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you've always been a person that
cares for people.

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So I did step into that
corporate training, which did

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not have that same premise, but
I think I needed to be there

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too, just to learn the different
things that I that I've learned

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over the course of my life.
The degree at Clemson, that's,

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that's really new.
That's only been in the last

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five to six years.
So when you say I'm a Tiger, it

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still is me getting used to.
But yes, that HRD human resource

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development, which is also
organizational leadership that

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has helped me and really pushed
me forward to look into things

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like this.
I do think that all of my skills

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over the years have led me to
this direction.

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You, you take the, the, the for
profit world where you're seeing

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the business run the way it is.
You're taking my recent

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educational experience as well
as just the time that I've spent

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in some nonprofit industries,
realizing that my cup is as full

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as it can get when I'm in this
space, and so knowing that

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that's where it's led me.
Where are you from originally?

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I am from Danville, KY.
Danville, Is that near

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Louisville, OR?
It is about 40 minutes away from

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Lexington, S OK, I gotcha.
About an hour and 15 minutes

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from Louisville.
Louisville, That's right.

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But I did go to University of
Louisville and graduate it

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there, and then have lived there
a great deal of my adult life

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when we weren't in the South.
Gotcha.

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What was your first job out of
college?

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I was in radiology, so that is
my healthcare, my clinical

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background.
Radiology did you have?

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To go to radiology school, yeah.
Yeah, When I was in school, it

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was part of the University of
Louisville's program.

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And so I got into that.
I spent a great deal in the

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clinical industry.
Came in handy because with my

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husband we moved around a bit
and so healthcare was always a

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little bit easier to get into,
particularly when you with

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having a family.
Yes, absolutely.

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So I guess you were in the the
for profit space for a while.

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How was that transition into the
nonprofit space?

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Well, I think it transitions.
I think they both collide,

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right.
I think you can take some

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nonprofit and use that wisely in
the for profit and vice versa.

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For me, what it what it does is
it really allows you to look at

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it from a business perspective.
I think for those of us that are

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in the nonprofit world, there's
no question you know you have

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the passion to do the good.
Work right?

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Absolutely yes.
But when you're doing the good

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work, really good, it's it
becomes less of a nonprofit

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business.
You have to run it like a

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business, yes.
And so that's.

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Cash flow is so important to
stay alive.

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Absolutely.
And so we can, we can't continue

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to do the work if the business
is not functional.

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And that's where I think most of
that for profit really transfers

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over for me is you've got to
look at how do we stay

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sustainable for years to come.
And without a good business

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background or business platform,
you don't have sustainability.

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Sustainability.
Absolutely, Yeah.

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That cash flow ends and it's
hard to stay alive as a

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business.
And then you're just one person

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out there, you know, breaking
for a mission.

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And so that becomes a little bit
more challenging.

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Yeah.
So we know that y'all know

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Greenville is a special place.
It's home for us.

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I'm born and raised here, been
here my whole life.

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He's been here for a long time
as well.

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So we'd love to know what
initially brought you and Carlos

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to Greenville.
Yeah.

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So Carlos, my husband of 33
years.

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Congratulations.
Thank you very much.

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Thank you very much.
Had an opportunity here to work

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to run the Greenville Chamber
and so we talked it out as a

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family, decided it was a good
opportunity and came down.

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Didn't when we saw it.
When I saw it, I thought, you

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know, you tricked me because he
did was he took me downtown

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Greenville right when it was,
you know, right at the sun was

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going to set.
And he said, what do you think?

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And I said, Oh my gosh, this is
beautiful.

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I've not been disappointed in so
many other ways.

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So that's what's what brought us
here.

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At that point, we were raising
the last two of our four kids.

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So they came with us, went
through high school here and and

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we are here.
I mean, it is home.

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What year was that that y'all
moved here?

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Oh, you asked the real hard
question. 2016 possibly.

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Yeah, OK.
Sounds about right.

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Yeah, that's right.
Before Greenville started to

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really take off around like the
2021 time when the downtown

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really started.
Post came.

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In Yeah, once we graduated from
Clemson, we came back to

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Greenville and we're like, wow,
it's changed so much from when

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we graduated high school, left
for four years, came back

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totally different place in a
great way.

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But when you moved here, we
noticed you were with nonprofits

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like United Ministries and Cream
of Women Giving, which I'm a

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member of.
So how did you get connected

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with organizations and jump in
and get to know people?

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Yeah.
Well, the grief of women giving,

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that was an easy one, right?
I met this woman named Sue

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Priester and she invited me to
come and I was sold the first

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day.
I walked down and she was like,

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oh God, this makes so much
sense.

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I did not join immediately
because again, I had still two

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kids.
We were running around doing

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sports and all that good fun
stuff.

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So it needed to be at my time.
And so I waited several years to

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join, but always knew that I
would.

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That just made sense, right?
That's a great way to understand

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the community.
Get to know non.

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Positive scenarios, A little bit
about it, I'm sorry, can you

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share with our listeners a
little bit about Greenville

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women?
Again, absolutely.

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It is a group of women that
formed about 20 years ago, small

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group at that .3 to 4 women who
has grown the organization to

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over 500 women who commit to
giving financial dollars so that

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we can collectively give to
nonprofits in our community.

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That is great.
So it is a beautiful, beautiful

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organization.
I believe in the the philosophy

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of collective giving.
One woman, one vote.

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And so we it really is just a
wonderful organization.

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Such a.
Great impact that we're making

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here in Greenville, so really
cool to hear that.

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But what initially drew you to
the Habitat for Humanity?

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Well, I will say if you if you
got two hours, I will tell you

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it was a bit of a journey, bit
of a journey.

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And so I will just start by
saying I never knew homelessness

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in the town I grew up in.
It may have been there, but I

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never saw it.
So I didn't see homelessness

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until I was an adult living in
Louisville.

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And through my schooling, I had
to do a rotation one time and it

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was mental health and I saw it
and I thought, whoa, you know,

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and So what I saw a lot was
mental health and homelessness

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tied together.
I did a little bit more of that,

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you know, just volunteering
through that.

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And I saw, I remember having a
conversation and someone said to

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me one day, you see that
gentleman over there, he used to

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be a physician and for whatever
reason, you know, had some some

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mental issues, had no support.
And here he is, never was able

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to get out of that.
And it just really allowed me to

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think, you know, at any given
time, could I possibly be in

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that situation?
Right.

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What crises come into our lives?
And we don't know that we can

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handle it until we're forced to
handle it.

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And do you have support?
And it really just got me to

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thinking differently.
I will say I was not part of a

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service family.
We didn't, we didn't have time

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nor the, the means to do a lot
of service when I was growing

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up.
And so my husband's family did.

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And I, when we met, I, he was
always engaged in service.

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And so I saw a little bit of
that and got it through osmosis.

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But that one incident was when
it really turned my, my, my, my

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shift around my mind, my
mindset.

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And from that point on, I got
here and, well, actually, let's

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back up.
I was on the Coalition for the

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Homeless board in Louisville
before we left.

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And then when we got here, I got
involved with United Ministries.

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There was another friend of mine
who was on the Habitat board and

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he knew me and he understood my
passion.

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And he said, I think this would
make sense for you.

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And I came on and it did.
He was absolutely correct.

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I, I, I really live in that
space of housing which is

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inclusive of, of homelessness,
but this, this one feels more

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comfortable for me because we're
talking about home ownership.

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Yeah, and haves have for
humanity.

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We've all seen the videos where
like someone gets blessed with

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00:11:58,160 --> 00:12:00,880
those home, they turn around and
they see the house and they just

228
00:12:00,880 --> 00:12:02,720
start crying.
And it's so heartwarming.

229
00:12:02,720 --> 00:12:06,400
But it is just life.
Generational change, absolutely.

230
00:12:06,800 --> 00:12:09,760
Because it's you're putting kids
in a home that that now they're

231
00:12:09,760 --> 00:12:12,760
in a better path to succeed.
So it's it's obviously a very

232
00:12:12,760 --> 00:12:13,960
great mission.
So.

233
00:12:14,080 --> 00:12:17,320
It is, it is.
And I wish everyone could see it

234
00:12:17,320 --> 00:12:22,200
from that perspective.
Think about there are some

235
00:12:22,200 --> 00:12:24,560
people who've never, you know,
it's not their fault, but their

236
00:12:24,560 --> 00:12:26,400
parents didn't have home
ownership, right?

237
00:12:26,400 --> 00:12:28,760
Exactly.
And so there is a bit of

238
00:12:28,760 --> 00:12:31,520
hesitancy for some of people
that don't know it.

239
00:12:32,640 --> 00:12:36,680
But when you get it, when you
get it, it's, to me, it reminds

240
00:12:36,680 --> 00:12:38,520
me of graduating from college,
right?

241
00:12:39,720 --> 00:12:41,480
Even graduate from high school,
you feel like you've

242
00:12:41,480 --> 00:12:43,360
accomplished something.
It empowers you.

243
00:12:44,040 --> 00:12:47,480
Not to mention the economic
component that it has in the

244
00:12:47,480 --> 00:12:49,400
community.
Because again, we know that when

245
00:12:49,400 --> 00:12:52,840
people buy a house, they're more
likely to stay put.

246
00:12:53,360 --> 00:12:55,200
They start engaging in their
community.

247
00:12:55,200 --> 00:12:57,840
They start buying around
themselves, you know, around

248
00:12:57,840 --> 00:13:01,560
their community.
They work there, they live

249
00:13:01,560 --> 00:13:03,360
there.
And oh, guess what?

250
00:13:03,720 --> 00:13:08,000
The woman that has two kids who
then grow up in that environment

251
00:13:08,360 --> 00:13:10,160
and then they begin to have
kids.

252
00:13:10,520 --> 00:13:13,760
So it really, it sounds starts
off it's one home, but it could

253
00:13:13,760 --> 00:13:16,560
end up as 7:00 or 8:00 rooms.
You know the number of kids you

254
00:13:16,560 --> 00:13:20,120
have because now those people
are seeing home ownership and

255
00:13:20,120 --> 00:13:22,920
the benefits of it.
Yeah, and I personally have

256
00:13:22,920 --> 00:13:25,480
experience with y'all just
through work we do builds and

257
00:13:25,480 --> 00:13:27,760
everything.
And one of my favorite ones,

258
00:13:27,760 --> 00:13:31,240
maybe a year or two ago, we were
building and this woman did have

259
00:13:31,240 --> 00:13:34,040
two kids and she was a single
mom.

260
00:13:34,040 --> 00:13:37,240
And we're putting up the house,
working hard out there, all

261
00:13:37,240 --> 00:13:40,800
these volunteers and who's right
there with us building the woman

262
00:13:40,800 --> 00:13:41,880
that's going to live in the
home.

263
00:13:41,920 --> 00:13:45,960
And that was amazing to get to
meet her and see her put up the

264
00:13:45,960 --> 00:13:49,320
walls of her own home.
And so great mission, like Heath

265
00:13:49,320 --> 00:13:54,000
said, but you stepped into the
CEO role in January of 2025.

266
00:13:54,000 --> 00:13:57,360
Is that correct?
So obviously you are doing great

267
00:13:57,360 --> 00:13:59,440
work, but why don't you share
with us what are some of the

268
00:13:59,440 --> 00:14:02,160
challenges that you've had to
face in this first year?

269
00:14:02,160 --> 00:14:04,640
Yeah.
Yeah, well, I can tell you

270
00:14:04,640 --> 00:14:10,360
January, whatever day we came
back, January 3rd or 4th, I was

271
00:14:10,360 --> 00:14:13,280
smacked with a challenge
immediately.

272
00:14:13,560 --> 00:14:18,200
And that is we had started the
shutting down of our Restores,

273
00:14:19,280 --> 00:14:22,920
which has been really connected
to Habitat over the years.

274
00:14:23,200 --> 00:14:26,560
It was not the mission, but it
supported the mission.

275
00:14:26,560 --> 00:14:27,800
So shutting down one of your
what?

276
00:14:28,160 --> 00:14:29,480
Restores.
Restores.

277
00:14:29,480 --> 00:14:32,560
So they were called Habitat for
Humanity Restores.

278
00:14:33,080 --> 00:14:38,360
We had two of them here in town.
You might walk in there and see

279
00:14:39,120 --> 00:14:42,200
furniture, almost like
consignment furniture.

280
00:14:43,280 --> 00:14:46,800
You may walk in there and see
HomeGoods.

281
00:14:47,240 --> 00:14:50,960
You may walk in there and see
building supplies.

282
00:14:50,960 --> 00:14:53,640
And are these being sold or is
this like a storage kind?

283
00:14:53,640 --> 00:14:58,920
Of it was sold, OK, got you.
And so the the furniture that we

284
00:14:58,920 --> 00:15:02,240
would get was donated from
residents here in our community.

285
00:15:02,240 --> 00:15:05,680
Gosh, I understand the building
supplies were often times

286
00:15:05,760 --> 00:15:09,800
purchase product that we then
would resell at a discounted

287
00:15:09,800 --> 00:15:11,440
rate.
So you definitely see a role and

288
00:15:11,440 --> 00:15:12,720
they're already shutting down
one of these.

289
00:15:12,720 --> 00:15:16,320
Stores, we're shutting it down.
And I wasn't naive about that.

290
00:15:16,320 --> 00:15:20,120
I, I prior to taking the role I
was on as president for six

291
00:15:20,120 --> 00:15:21,600
months.
And of course being on the

292
00:15:21,600 --> 00:15:25,400
board, those discussions were
taking place well before I took

293
00:15:25,400 --> 00:15:30,600
over the CEO role.
But January was, I think it was

294
00:15:30,600 --> 00:15:33,000
January 17th was when we did the
closing.

295
00:15:33,840 --> 00:15:38,120
And so almost immediately, I had
to then ramp down to stores.

296
00:15:38,600 --> 00:15:41,000
Wow.
Yeah, I don't think we had done

297
00:15:41,000 --> 00:15:43,720
that.
We moved from one location to

298
00:15:43,720 --> 00:15:48,320
another in the past, but we had
not shut one down and all of the

299
00:15:48,320 --> 00:15:52,600
team that was here had not
experienced that.

300
00:15:52,920 --> 00:15:55,160
Again, they may have
transitioned, should not have

301
00:15:55,160 --> 00:15:58,480
shut down.
So if you can imagine my first 2

302
00:15:58,480 --> 00:16:02,400
1/2, three months, I went
straight into operational mode

303
00:16:02,760 --> 00:16:08,000
trying to shut these down.
Did it go without a hitch?

304
00:16:08,040 --> 00:16:11,160
Absolutely not.
But we tried to be.

305
00:16:11,360 --> 00:16:15,160
I tried to be as compassionate
as I could and understanding as

306
00:16:15,160 --> 00:16:19,120
I could and hopefully that that
was received by not only the

307
00:16:19,120 --> 00:16:23,320
community and people that were
at one point part of our team.

308
00:16:23,880 --> 00:16:31,320
It was not an easy decision and
it was not easy to do, but that

309
00:16:31,320 --> 00:16:32,720
was part of one of my
challenges.

310
00:16:32,720 --> 00:16:39,320
The other challenges, land.
It has been the most challenging

311
00:16:39,320 --> 00:16:42,240
thing that I think that I've
experienced.

312
00:16:42,760 --> 00:16:44,960
I thought it would be easy
enough if we just have money.

313
00:16:44,960 --> 00:16:48,600
We buy land, right?
But we live in a beautiful,

314
00:16:48,600 --> 00:16:53,360
beautiful community that others
understand that it's beautiful

315
00:16:53,360 --> 00:16:56,880
and they want to come here too.
And so land is becoming more and

316
00:16:56,880 --> 00:17:00,080
more challenging to find.
Even when you do have a little

317
00:17:00,080 --> 00:17:05,040
bit of money, it's it's hard to
compete with people that are

318
00:17:05,040 --> 00:17:06,520
willing to pay big dollars.
Yeah.

319
00:17:07,119 --> 00:17:11,359
And so, but we have work to do.
And so we've got to find land.

320
00:17:11,359 --> 00:17:14,640
And that is that has been a
really big challenge that I

321
00:17:14,640 --> 00:17:16,839
think not only do I have it
today, but I'll have it a year

322
00:17:16,839 --> 00:17:18,560
from now.
I wouldn't, yeah.

323
00:17:18,599 --> 00:17:21,200
That's makes perfect sense as
being a huge challenge.

324
00:17:21,200 --> 00:17:23,400
I wouldn't have thought of that.
But yeah, I could see we're just

325
00:17:23,400 --> 00:17:26,079
having the space to be able to
build and do the mission would

326
00:17:26,079 --> 00:17:27,560
be very difficult.
Absolutely.

327
00:17:27,560 --> 00:17:30,120
What have been some of your like
favorite moments during your

328
00:17:30,120 --> 00:17:33,520
time with with Habitat?
Yeah, Christina, you mentioned

329
00:17:33,960 --> 00:17:36,840
one of them, right?
Talking about the families and

330
00:17:36,840 --> 00:17:40,000
as recent as last week we were
shooting a video.

331
00:17:41,080 --> 00:17:43,520
It's more of a just to help
people understand who we are,

332
00:17:43,520 --> 00:17:47,920
what we do.
And there was a young lady who

333
00:17:47,920 --> 00:17:51,040
is a partner of ours.
She's getting ready to go into a

334
00:17:51,040 --> 00:17:53,720
home and we had not met, but we
asked her to be part of the

335
00:17:53,720 --> 00:17:59,680
video.
Unrehearsed I on Thursday, I you

336
00:17:59,680 --> 00:18:02,240
know what's my why, right?
Why do I do this?

337
00:18:03,200 --> 00:18:07,440
We shot the video on Friday.
They were asking her about her

338
00:18:07,440 --> 00:18:13,120
story and she spoke so much
about what it meant to her.

339
00:18:13,120 --> 00:18:17,040
The gratitude she had for having
this opportunity, the way that

340
00:18:17,040 --> 00:18:20,000
we've been able to walk
alongside her to help her

341
00:18:20,000 --> 00:18:24,320
prepare for this, the way that
she already feels like a family

342
00:18:24,320 --> 00:18:28,040
member of ours, The way that
she's looked at more than just a

343
00:18:28,040 --> 00:18:30,800
number.
That was everything that I had

344
00:18:30,800 --> 00:18:32,880
talked about on Wednesday and
rehearsed.

345
00:18:33,720 --> 00:18:38,360
Seeing the excitement that she
has as a middle-aged woman who

346
00:18:38,360 --> 00:18:42,400
just wants to provide for her
family, Who wants to have the

347
00:18:42,400 --> 00:18:45,160
birthday parties at a place
where she knows people can call

348
00:18:45,160 --> 00:18:47,240
home.
To know that her kids can walk

349
00:18:47,240 --> 00:18:50,040
back in there years later.
To know that she's setting them

350
00:18:50,040 --> 00:18:54,520
up for success and getting that
stable foundation that every

351
00:18:54,520 --> 00:18:59,000
person wants to have.
That really, I mean, there was

352
00:18:59,000 --> 00:19:02,040
not a dry eye in that room.
You know, we had the filming

353
00:19:02,040 --> 00:19:04,800
crew, We had the person, our
marketing person that was doing

354
00:19:04,800 --> 00:19:07,160
the video.
We had the young lady telling

355
00:19:07,160 --> 00:19:09,600
her story.
I'm sitting off to the side and

356
00:19:09,600 --> 00:19:11,480
I think we all had to take a
break for a moment.

357
00:19:12,240 --> 00:19:15,040
But it really just speaks to the
power of what we do.

358
00:19:16,200 --> 00:19:19,960
Looking at people individually
saying, listen, this may be a

359
00:19:19,960 --> 00:19:22,400
little scary.
You may not have ever considered

360
00:19:22,400 --> 00:19:25,040
it, but we're willing to walk
alongside with you and help you

361
00:19:25,040 --> 00:19:29,040
realize your dream while also
knowing that it can set you up,

362
00:19:29,240 --> 00:19:33,640
you and your family up for the
future in a way that you may not

363
00:19:33,640 --> 00:19:36,200
have ever thought about it.
I love the mission behind these

364
00:19:36,200 --> 00:19:39,400
nonprofits and especially the
fact that when you're in such a

365
00:19:39,400 --> 00:19:42,760
beautiful nonprofit, you don't
have to question your why.

366
00:19:42,760 --> 00:19:44,800
Like it's, it's really easy to
why am I doing this?

367
00:19:44,800 --> 00:19:46,720
And Oh yeah, that's right.
Because we're changing lives,

368
00:19:46,720 --> 00:19:50,280
because we're making an impact,
because we're generational

369
00:19:50,280 --> 00:19:53,320
benefits for these things.
And I think that listeners I

370
00:19:53,320 --> 00:19:57,240
know as a 20 year old for
myself, I didn't see nonprofits

371
00:19:57,240 --> 00:19:59,680
as I don't know if they were
like I heard of nonprofits.

372
00:19:59,680 --> 00:20:01,600
I didn't know that they were
similar to businesses that you

373
00:20:01,600 --> 00:20:04,280
can support your family in a
nonprofit.

374
00:20:04,280 --> 00:20:06,000
And I don't think a lot of
people realize that that's an

375
00:20:06,000 --> 00:20:09,120
option to take a career in those
in those paths.

376
00:20:09,120 --> 00:20:11,760
Absolutely, absolutely.
And you know, there's a lot of

377
00:20:11,760 --> 00:20:15,520
people that really are looking
for that, right?

378
00:20:15,560 --> 00:20:18,360
They want to work in a place
where they can feel good about

379
00:20:18,360 --> 00:20:20,680
what they're doing, that they're
helping others.

380
00:20:20,680 --> 00:20:26,760
And so at your age, I was not
thinking of it as a as a viable

381
00:20:26,800 --> 00:20:28,000
career option as well.
I.

382
00:20:28,000 --> 00:20:30,040
Don't think we shared enough
with young kids.

383
00:20:30,040 --> 00:20:31,240
Yeah.
And I think we have a lot of

384
00:20:31,240 --> 00:20:33,320
interest in it.
You're absolutely right.

385
00:20:33,320 --> 00:20:35,680
Again, I was not LED in that
direction.

386
00:20:35,960 --> 00:20:37,440
We were trying to survive
ourselves.

387
00:20:38,360 --> 00:20:41,000
So helping others was not in my,
you know, in my daily

388
00:20:41,000 --> 00:20:44,280
repertoire.
But as I've grown a little bit

389
00:20:44,280 --> 00:20:47,960
and of course, again, my
husband's family, they did a lot

390
00:20:47,960 --> 00:20:49,880
of that.
And so I've been able to see

391
00:20:49,880 --> 00:20:51,960
that over the years and see the
value in that.

392
00:20:52,200 --> 00:20:54,440
I'm also but a different space
in my life, too.

393
00:20:54,680 --> 00:20:57,760
I'm in a space where, you know,
raising the kids, you know,

394
00:20:57,760 --> 00:21:00,360
they're out of the house.
And so now I can put time into

395
00:21:00,360 --> 00:21:03,640
doing those things that really
matter to me.

396
00:21:03,760 --> 00:21:06,080
Yeah, I would imagine too.
We touched on like lamb being a

397
00:21:06,080 --> 00:21:08,520
huge challenge, but I imagine
fundraising is also a huge

398
00:21:08,520 --> 00:21:10,400
challenge, especially in the
nonprofit world.

399
00:21:10,560 --> 00:21:12,680
Yeah.
You know, I appreciate you not

400
00:21:12,680 --> 00:21:16,560
letting me push that along this
along the side because, yeah,

401
00:21:16,560 --> 00:21:18,280
the philanthropic landscape is
changing.

402
00:21:18,360 --> 00:21:20,800
Yeah.
When I came into this job last

403
00:21:20,800 --> 00:21:24,560
year, before I took over the
CEO, I remember going to an

404
00:21:24,600 --> 00:21:28,560
event that Greater Good
Greenville hosted and they were

405
00:21:28,560 --> 00:21:30,880
telling us then the
philanthropic landscape is

406
00:21:30,880 --> 00:21:33,040
beginning to look different for
nonprofits.

407
00:21:35,080 --> 00:21:39,000
Why is that?
Well, people are starting to go

408
00:21:39,000 --> 00:21:41,320
in different directions, right?
They first of all, they want to

409
00:21:41,320 --> 00:21:44,160
see what they're giving.
But we also know that people are

410
00:21:44,160 --> 00:21:47,400
giving differently.
Corporations are starting to

411
00:21:47,720 --> 00:21:52,680
really kind of hone in on what
they do from a financial

412
00:21:52,680 --> 00:21:55,600
perspective.
And So what we were told is you

413
00:21:56,120 --> 00:21:58,760
really need to start being a
little bit creative and start

414
00:21:58,760 --> 00:22:00,320
thinking about what that looks
like.

415
00:22:01,280 --> 00:22:03,600
And so we began talking through
that.

416
00:22:03,800 --> 00:22:06,400
OK, building a house is not
cheap.

417
00:22:06,440 --> 00:22:10,880
No, not at.
All and so it requires it

418
00:22:10,880 --> 00:22:14,800
requires funding.
We we don't have we habitat.

419
00:22:15,360 --> 00:22:18,520
We don't just wake up and have a
ton of money in the bank account

420
00:22:18,520 --> 00:22:19,600
saying we're going to build this
house.

421
00:22:19,600 --> 00:22:21,320
There's not money just coming in
every day, right?

422
00:22:22,040 --> 00:22:25,200
Right.
But we do count on our community

423
00:22:26,400 --> 00:22:29,800
and their interest in affordable
homeownership that they will

424
00:22:29,800 --> 00:22:32,040
help support us.
And then what we do is we we

425
00:22:32,040 --> 00:22:35,800
utilize that to build sticks and
bricks and then the funding that

426
00:22:35,800 --> 00:22:38,680
we get, we then turn that around
and and just, you know, continue

427
00:22:38,680 --> 00:22:41,320
to build more.
But it is always about keeping

428
00:22:41,320 --> 00:22:43,920
it affordable.
Was when you stepped into the

429
00:22:43,920 --> 00:22:46,000
role of CEO, I mean, being on
the board you were probably

430
00:22:46,000 --> 00:22:48,840
aware, but did you realize it
was going to be so fundraising

431
00:22:48,840 --> 00:22:51,200
intensive or is it as
fundraising intensive?

432
00:22:51,200 --> 00:22:54,280
Is that one of your like meant
daily tasks I would say.

433
00:22:54,320 --> 00:22:56,880
Yeah, it is very fundraiser
intensive.

434
00:22:57,960 --> 00:23:01,240
We have to look at everything
and we have to be creative.

435
00:23:02,760 --> 00:23:04,920
You said when I was on the
board, when I was on the board,

436
00:23:05,560 --> 00:23:08,160
like most board members, you
understand the basis of the

437
00:23:08,160 --> 00:23:12,880
organization I like to refer to,
but you have no idea how the

438
00:23:12,880 --> 00:23:17,280
sausage is made, right?
And so I have had a really great

439
00:23:17,280 --> 00:23:20,240
opportunity to look at it from a
board perspective, which is

440
00:23:20,400 --> 00:23:24,360
strategically, but then also
say, hey, listen, there's so

441
00:23:24,360 --> 00:23:27,120
much more to this than we've
ever imagined.

442
00:23:27,120 --> 00:23:30,720
And so I feel like I really have
kind of the best of both worlds.

443
00:23:30,720 --> 00:23:32,400
I've been able to see it from
both sides.

444
00:23:32,720 --> 00:23:35,560
I can share with the board what
they didn't know and I can share

445
00:23:35,560 --> 00:23:39,040
with the team what they what the
board, what the board is talking

446
00:23:39,040 --> 00:23:40,880
about.
So I really think it's it's a

447
00:23:40,880 --> 00:23:43,440
win win.
But there's a lot that we have

448
00:23:43,440 --> 00:23:46,120
to think about and fundraising
is a huge component.

449
00:23:46,480 --> 00:23:49,200
Absolutely.
Could you share with us any fun

450
00:23:49,200 --> 00:23:53,240
new plans for 2026 townhomes,
duplexes or any partnerships?

451
00:23:53,240 --> 00:24:00,840
Coming up, absolutely.
We recognize that we need smart

452
00:24:00,840 --> 00:24:05,040
density now from habitats
perspective, just to remove the

453
00:24:05,040 --> 00:24:07,360
confusion.
We're not talking about

454
00:24:09,280 --> 00:24:13,760
apartment complexes, We're not
talking about, you know condos

455
00:24:14,160 --> 00:24:16,480
stacked, right.
We're talking when we're talking

456
00:24:16,480 --> 00:24:19,760
about density, we're talking
about considering land.

457
00:24:19,760 --> 00:24:22,400
How can we do more with less
land?

458
00:24:23,520 --> 00:24:26,880
And so we have for years stay
focused on single family here in

459
00:24:26,880 --> 00:24:29,720
Greenville.
We are going to be doing our

460
00:24:29,720 --> 00:24:33,160
first and I am referring to them
as town plexus.

461
00:24:33,160 --> 00:24:36,520
You all may refer to them as
duplexes, but they're going to

462
00:24:36,520 --> 00:24:39,000
be similar town plexus but in
twos.

463
00:24:39,680 --> 00:24:41,920
The reason why I'm referring to
them as town plexus because

464
00:24:41,920 --> 00:24:44,240
they'll be for ownership, not
for rental.

465
00:24:44,240 --> 00:24:44,880
OK.
Got you.

466
00:24:44,920 --> 00:24:46,520
Yeah.
So we're going to start on our

467
00:24:46,520 --> 00:24:51,000
first town Plex.
I believe it's in February and

468
00:24:51,000 --> 00:24:52,960
we're built.
We'll also be breaking ground in

469
00:24:52,960 --> 00:24:56,280
our first town home in late
spring.

470
00:24:57,360 --> 00:25:00,320
So this is all new, new and
exciting for us.

471
00:25:00,320 --> 00:25:02,200
We're also going to look at
modular.

472
00:25:02,520 --> 00:25:04,920
We're going to look at 3D.
Now are we going to do those?

473
00:25:04,920 --> 00:25:07,040
No, but we are investigating
them heavily.

474
00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:09,040
We are also looking at a town
home.

475
00:25:09,080 --> 00:25:14,560
I'm sorry, tiny homes refer to
sometimes as micro homes or

476
00:25:14,560 --> 00:25:17,040
skinny homes.
I think that there's a place for

477
00:25:17,040 --> 00:25:19,800
that and I think that there's a
group of people that fit into

478
00:25:19,800 --> 00:25:23,560
our demographic that could
really appreciate that.

479
00:25:23,600 --> 00:25:28,440
Our demographic is spreading
right, 30 to 80% area median

480
00:25:28,440 --> 00:25:34,200
income.
But in 20/25/2026, that can be a

481
00:25:34,200 --> 00:25:36,520
25 year old who just graduated
from college.

482
00:25:37,200 --> 00:25:42,720
It can be the workforce person
who has a a job but is making 50

483
00:25:42,720 --> 00:25:45,160
or $60,000 a year and may have a
kid.

484
00:25:45,480 --> 00:25:48,760
They could even make $70,000 and
have a kid or two.

485
00:25:48,760 --> 00:25:54,600
They fit into our demographic.
It also is our elders who may be

486
00:25:54,600 --> 00:25:58,120
on a fixed income and their
apartments are, you know, just

487
00:25:58,120 --> 00:26:04,120
creeping up and pricing anymore.
And so our our group is so vast

488
00:26:04,400 --> 00:26:08,600
now that really we could speak
to a really large group of

489
00:26:08,600 --> 00:26:11,800
people.
So the model now is we can be

490
00:26:11,800 --> 00:26:14,240
your forever home.
We could also be your starter

491
00:26:14,240 --> 00:26:15,520
home to a degree.
There you go.

492
00:26:15,800 --> 00:26:16,800
Yeah.
How big is who?

493
00:26:16,800 --> 00:26:18,560
The people.
Are how big is the need in

494
00:26:18,560 --> 00:26:20,280
Greenville?
Like how long is y'all's wait

495
00:26:20,280 --> 00:26:22,640
list?
Yeah, let me just put it this

496
00:26:22,640 --> 00:26:24,880
way.
We did an application process

497
00:26:26,240 --> 00:26:29,440
two months ago.
In 30 days, we had over 700

498
00:26:29,440 --> 00:26:34,840
people apply.
We had over 700 people apply.

499
00:26:35,040 --> 00:26:39,560
They know what we do, right?
Over 700 people applied.

500
00:26:39,560 --> 00:26:43,160
Now, of that 700, not all of
them were eligible.

501
00:26:43,400 --> 00:26:47,760
Usually in a big pot like that,
there's 15% or so that at that

502
00:26:47,760 --> 00:26:51,520
moment could qualify.
But there is still a large

503
00:26:51,520 --> 00:26:53,920
percent of people that are just
on the cusp, right?

504
00:26:53,920 --> 00:26:56,320
They just need to do a few
things here or there.

505
00:26:56,600 --> 00:26:58,600
And you know, they could
probably be in the pipeline

506
00:26:58,600 --> 00:27:02,400
within the next year or so.
But if that number doesn't shock

507
00:27:02,400 --> 00:27:07,880
you, I don't know what would. 30
days, over 700 people applied to

508
00:27:07,960 --> 00:27:11,000
us I.
Would imagine, but with that

509
00:27:11,000 --> 00:27:14,080
many people applying for that, I
don't know if you can.

510
00:27:14,360 --> 00:27:17,800
Is it feasible to meet that need
for all the 700?

511
00:27:18,320 --> 00:27:20,200
I don't imagine it's a huge
need.

512
00:27:20,200 --> 00:27:22,480
It sounds like yeah.
Probably not from home

513
00:27:22,480 --> 00:27:25,280
ownership, but collectively,
right?

514
00:27:25,280 --> 00:27:27,240
There are several nonprofits
here in town.

515
00:27:27,640 --> 00:27:32,160
Some do home rental, some do
home ownership like us.

516
00:27:32,160 --> 00:27:33,760
What is the one by Greenville
Tech?

517
00:27:33,800 --> 00:27:36,040
Front porch housing.
Front porch housing, yes.

518
00:27:37,080 --> 00:27:39,000
Yeah.
So there are many different

519
00:27:39,800 --> 00:27:42,120
entities that are working on
housing.

520
00:27:42,280 --> 00:27:44,080
So it doesn't.
All fall like it's not yours

521
00:27:44,080 --> 00:27:46,880
front.
Porch is rental.

522
00:27:46,880 --> 00:27:49,960
They're working on ownership.
There's an opportunity.

523
00:27:50,000 --> 00:27:52,160
I think you just have to all
come together as a team, like,

524
00:27:52,160 --> 00:27:55,240
yeah, here's their capacity,
that's their capacity, and let's

525
00:27:55,280 --> 00:27:56,760
try to do what we can all
together.

526
00:27:56,760 --> 00:28:00,040
And here's here's the philosophy
I know I've had an opportunity

527
00:28:00,040 --> 00:28:02,240
to speak with Homes of Hope.
Right.

528
00:28:02,440 --> 00:28:05,560
They're a great one too.
Neither of us are intimidated by

529
00:28:05,560 --> 00:28:09,080
the other.
We know that we could do 100% of

530
00:28:09,080 --> 00:28:14,640
what we could do and we'd still
probably not resolve there's.

531
00:28:14,840 --> 00:28:17,200
Plenty of fish in the sea, as
your dad always says, Yeah.

532
00:28:17,440 --> 00:28:22,240
Absolutely, absolutely.
So do all 700 of those people.

533
00:28:22,240 --> 00:28:25,520
Plus will they benefit from a
home?

534
00:28:27,120 --> 00:28:31,080
I I do believe we live in a
world in IN20252026 and in the

535
00:28:31,080 --> 00:28:35,280
future not everyone is going to
need home ownership.

536
00:28:36,480 --> 00:28:39,920
But I do believe everyone needs
a home and so we have to define

537
00:28:39,920 --> 00:28:41,080
what is home.
Right.

538
00:28:41,600 --> 00:28:45,160
And I think home is defined very
different for different people.

539
00:28:45,160 --> 00:28:47,280
And what is decent as you
mentioned at the very beginning.

540
00:28:47,560 --> 00:28:52,720
Warm, dry and safe is important.
Warm, dry and safe is important.

541
00:28:52,720 --> 00:28:56,240
And if we can get people into
warm, dry and safe, whether it's

542
00:28:56,240 --> 00:29:00,640
home ownership, whether it's
rental and it's affordable, I

543
00:29:00,640 --> 00:29:04,480
think that that's that's that's
the battle right there making

544
00:29:04,480 --> 00:29:05,880
sure we do that.
That's good.

545
00:29:05,880 --> 00:29:08,600
Y'all are on a great mission and
track and have done great work,

546
00:29:08,600 --> 00:29:10,480
so it'll be exciting to see how
you continue.

547
00:29:10,800 --> 00:29:13,520
We have a volunteer day coming
up actually, I think in two or

548
00:29:13,520 --> 00:29:16,640
three weeks with y'all, so it'll
be fun to see who we meet and

549
00:29:16,640 --> 00:29:19,320
what we end up doing that day.
It's always fun out there.

550
00:29:19,320 --> 00:29:22,440
Yes it is.
What advice would you give to

551
00:29:22,440 --> 00:29:26,240
young listeners, especially
women who want to be ACEO and

552
00:29:26,240 --> 00:29:33,440
make an impact like you one day?
Yeah, so I had the opportunity

553
00:29:33,440 --> 00:29:36,360
to talk with a young lady.
We she was a firm, an intern for

554
00:29:36,360 --> 00:29:40,160
us and she's super sweet young
lady.

555
00:29:40,160 --> 00:29:43,800
And you know, I can only
reference my own journey and I

556
00:29:43,800 --> 00:29:49,200
can tell you I, I don't know
that I saw this, you know, 10

557
00:29:49,200 --> 00:29:54,840
years ago, I was raised in a
family that was important to me.

558
00:29:55,200 --> 00:29:58,240
I was a trailing spouse.
So my husband was searching for

559
00:29:58,240 --> 00:30:00,800
his career and I supported that.
And so I considered myself a

560
00:30:00,800 --> 00:30:04,320
trailing spouse, but at once,
you know, at some point in my

561
00:30:04,320 --> 00:30:06,480
life, I got to the point where
not me, right?

562
00:30:06,600 --> 00:30:08,120
Who am I?
What do I need to be?

563
00:30:08,880 --> 00:30:12,720
What I told this young lady is,
don't you ever let anyone tell

564
00:30:12,720 --> 00:30:14,640
you you can't have it all
because you can't.

565
00:30:15,240 --> 00:30:18,800
You can't, particularly as a
woman, You can have it all.

566
00:30:19,440 --> 00:30:23,920
You may not have it all at the
same time, but you can have it

567
00:30:23,920 --> 00:30:26,280
all.
For me, there was a little bit

568
00:30:26,280 --> 00:30:29,320
of frustration and
discouragement throughout life.

569
00:30:29,320 --> 00:30:32,440
You know, sometimes you thought
you needed this opportunity and

570
00:30:32,440 --> 00:30:36,560
you'd go for it.
And you may have heard no, I've

571
00:30:36,560 --> 00:30:38,880
been able to kind of flip that
now later in life.

572
00:30:38,880 --> 00:30:43,960
And so maybe that no, was just
not right now because I sit back

573
00:30:43,960 --> 00:30:47,880
today and I know that I could
not have done this job 10 years

574
00:30:47,880 --> 00:30:51,280
ago raising the kids the way
that I wanted to raise my kids.

575
00:30:52,080 --> 00:30:54,480
I could not have given it the
time that I wanted to.

576
00:30:54,720 --> 00:30:57,400
I could have not given it the
energy that I wanted to.

577
00:30:57,920 --> 00:31:00,720
It was important for me to give
my kids and and be supportive of

578
00:31:00,720 --> 00:31:04,080
my spouse.
My kids are now grown.

579
00:31:05,240 --> 00:31:06,960
I still feel like I'm fairly
young.

580
00:31:08,000 --> 00:31:12,080
My husband is, you know, he
feels really comfortable and now

581
00:31:12,080 --> 00:31:16,480
he can support me.
So I, I believe that women,

582
00:31:16,480 --> 00:31:23,560
particularly women, if you want
it all, do it knowing that some

583
00:31:23,560 --> 00:31:25,280
people they can manage it all at
the same time.

584
00:31:25,280 --> 00:31:27,880
Some it's you.
You may not have it all at the

585
00:31:27,880 --> 00:31:30,360
same time, but that's my
journey.

586
00:31:30,520 --> 00:31:33,560
I think we can do it.
You have to stand strong.

587
00:31:33,960 --> 00:31:36,520
You're going to be challenged
just for the mere fact that

588
00:31:36,520 --> 00:31:38,760
we're women, right?
You're going to be questioned.

589
00:31:39,160 --> 00:31:42,440
I am not a bull in the China
shop type leader.

590
00:31:43,400 --> 00:31:47,080
And oftentimes, sometimes I feel
like that's the only way people

591
00:31:47,080 --> 00:31:50,000
will receive and not question
you as much.

592
00:31:50,000 --> 00:31:53,040
That's not who I am.
So I'm trying to do it my way,

593
00:31:54,880 --> 00:31:57,600
but it's been good and it's
been, it's a wonderful journey.

594
00:31:57,880 --> 00:32:01,640
And if this is the way, if this
is what you desire, I say go for

595
00:32:01,640 --> 00:32:02,600
it.
Go for.

596
00:32:02,600 --> 00:32:04,880
It I love how you mentioned it
might not always be the right

597
00:32:04,880 --> 00:32:09,200
season, like you can still do it
but maybe no is OK right now and

598
00:32:09,200 --> 00:32:10,680
there's always later down the
road.

599
00:32:10,800 --> 00:32:12,920
You'll always find the right
time for it if your mind is

600
00:32:12,920 --> 00:32:15,640
still set on it.
What advice would you give to

601
00:32:15,640 --> 00:32:19,040
young professionals that are
trying to progress in their

602
00:32:19,040 --> 00:32:21,240
career but also want to balance
serving?

603
00:32:21,480 --> 00:32:26,680
Yeah, you know, young
professionals, it seems easier

604
00:32:26,680 --> 00:32:28,920
than it that it would right now
in my life.

605
00:32:28,920 --> 00:32:34,240
But you know, I think you have
to do you have to see you have a

606
00:32:34,240 --> 00:32:37,600
barometer, right And that
barometer is internal.

607
00:32:38,400 --> 00:32:44,320
I used the cup full right And
for me, I knew it was internal.

608
00:32:44,320 --> 00:32:47,360
I knew when that couples being
filled and I knew when it was

609
00:32:47,360 --> 00:32:52,840
empty.
We the only thing this promised

610
00:32:52,840 --> 00:32:56,040
this yesterday.
And so if you have to live your

611
00:32:56,040 --> 00:32:59,880
life, you might as well live it
doing the things that make you

612
00:32:59,880 --> 00:33:00,680
happy.
Yeah.

613
00:33:01,040 --> 00:33:04,520
And so as I look at life and if
I could, you know, even if what

614
00:33:04,520 --> 00:33:07,840
I tell my kids, first of all,
service work is good.

615
00:33:08,320 --> 00:33:10,160
It's good.
I mean, when you can help

616
00:33:10,160 --> 00:33:12,640
another person.
I really believe that's why

617
00:33:12,640 --> 00:33:13,560
we're here.
Yeah.

618
00:33:14,200 --> 00:33:18,120
It's my, my existence and it
took me a little bit later to

619
00:33:18,120 --> 00:33:20,560
figure it out, but my existence
is to help others.

620
00:33:21,400 --> 00:33:24,000
Again, I go back to my dad.
My dad said, hey, I knew very

621
00:33:24,000 --> 00:33:28,400
young, at your very young age
that that was who you were.

622
00:33:29,080 --> 00:33:31,880
It took you a little bit to get
there, but that's who you were.

623
00:33:33,640 --> 00:33:35,680
Balance.
But knowing when that cup is

624
00:33:35,680 --> 00:33:39,040
filled, I think it is, is an
internal component.

625
00:33:39,360 --> 00:33:42,160
There will be some people that
service is not important, but

626
00:33:42,160 --> 00:33:44,680
when it is and you experience
it, you know it.

627
00:33:45,280 --> 00:33:49,920
And so just try to balance that,
knowing that there's only one of

628
00:33:49,920 --> 00:33:53,480
you.
Do it when it feels right, and

629
00:33:53,480 --> 00:33:55,120
when it feels right, you'll know
it.

630
00:33:55,640 --> 00:33:56,920
I love it.
I love it.

631
00:33:56,920 --> 00:34:00,280
So you are making an incredible
different, sharing amazing

632
00:34:00,280 --> 00:34:03,080
advice.
What legacy would you like to

633
00:34:03,080 --> 00:34:04,760
leave with Habitat Greenville?
Yeah.

634
00:34:06,440 --> 00:34:10,159
The legacy I would love to leave
and if you'll give me a second

635
00:34:10,239 --> 00:34:11,880
because I want to make sure that
I.

636
00:34:15,719 --> 00:34:18,040
This is always one of my
favorite questions that we ask

637
00:34:18,040 --> 00:34:21,480
our guests is what is like when
it's all said and done like it's

638
00:34:21,480 --> 00:34:24,600
a lot, a lot of times like when
you're in a for profit, you can

639
00:34:24,600 --> 00:34:27,440
kind of question the purpose,
but with something like Habitat,

640
00:34:27,440 --> 00:34:31,520
you don't really question that.
Yeah, well, first of all, the

641
00:34:31,520 --> 00:34:35,040
legacy I'd love to do have here
in Greenville is that we work

642
00:34:35,040 --> 00:34:38,080
ourselves out of a job.
I mean, honestly, if I could do

643
00:34:38,080 --> 00:34:43,800
that, I would be thrilled.
The reality of it is that's

644
00:34:43,800 --> 00:34:47,480
probably not going to happen.
And so when we're talking about

645
00:34:47,480 --> 00:34:50,520
generational wealth, you know,
I'd like to leave a legacy where

646
00:34:50,800 --> 00:34:56,480
there's generational stability
that we are able to help people

647
00:34:56,480 --> 00:35:01,080
get into home ownership or a
home where they can begin to

648
00:35:01,080 --> 00:35:03,920
feel stable, where they can
begin to build generational

649
00:35:03,920 --> 00:35:07,560
wealth and generational capital
within their own family.

650
00:35:08,520 --> 00:35:11,720
The other thing is innovation
and scalability, right?

651
00:35:12,560 --> 00:35:15,160
I'd love for a part of the
legacy.

652
00:35:15,760 --> 00:35:19,240
And by the way, I'm already
living on the heels of a legacy

653
00:35:19,240 --> 00:35:23,440
that was developed from my
predecessor Monroe Free and the

654
00:35:23,440 --> 00:35:26,240
team that he's had.
And then of course, I, I am sure

655
00:35:26,240 --> 00:35:30,240
that he would say he's live on
the legacy of the fullers who

656
00:35:30,240 --> 00:35:33,920
started international, right?
And so we all just keep living

657
00:35:33,920 --> 00:35:37,600
on the legacy of other people.
But you know, here locally, if I

658
00:35:37,600 --> 00:35:41,040
could also build on the legacy
of innovation and scalability.

659
00:35:41,760 --> 00:35:44,520
I think with some of the things
that we're that we talked about

660
00:35:44,520 --> 00:35:51,440
earlier, town plexus, townhomes,
considering tiny homes, other

661
00:35:51,960 --> 00:35:55,480
tools that we could put in our
backpack so that we can scale

662
00:35:55,480 --> 00:36:00,120
and be ready for, you know, any
changes so that we can easily

663
00:36:00,120 --> 00:36:04,320
pivot when necessary.
If we can do that, I would

664
00:36:04,320 --> 00:36:06,160
consider that a really good
legacy.

665
00:36:07,040 --> 00:36:08,920
And then the final thing is just
community.

666
00:36:09,440 --> 00:36:14,360
If we can help the community
learn to depend on us, to trust

667
00:36:14,360 --> 00:36:19,240
on us, and know that we can be
there to help solve some of that

668
00:36:19,240 --> 00:36:22,480
that we have going on in our
community, that would be the

669
00:36:22,480 --> 00:36:25,200
three top things that I would
love to leave behind.

670
00:36:25,440 --> 00:36:28,240
Again, the most important thing
being that we work ourselves out

671
00:36:28,240 --> 00:36:30,680
of a job.
Incredible initiatives right

672
00:36:30,680 --> 00:36:31,320
there.
Yeah.

673
00:36:31,440 --> 00:36:34,240
So with with, I guess we can
close it out with this, but if

674
00:36:34,280 --> 00:36:37,040
any listener is hoping to get
involved and support this

675
00:36:37,040 --> 00:36:40,800
mission, how can they reach out
and get involved with Habitat

676
00:36:40,800 --> 00:36:44,440
for Humanity?
Yeah, well, the first premise is

677
00:36:44,640 --> 00:36:47,480
volunteering.
We have.

678
00:36:47,480 --> 00:36:50,000
The reason why we're able to do
what we do is we live on a

679
00:36:50,000 --> 00:36:53,040
volunteer model.
And so you all just said it

680
00:36:53,040 --> 00:36:54,080
right?
You've come out, you've

681
00:36:54,080 --> 00:36:57,320
volunteered.
We really depend where, where

682
00:36:57,600 --> 00:37:00,440
for profits.
You know, they have staff, we

683
00:37:00,440 --> 00:37:03,800
have volunteers, we have skilled
volunteers that oversee

684
00:37:03,920 --> 00:37:07,160
volunteers that come out right.
You can speak to that, but.

685
00:37:07,360 --> 00:37:10,280
They are so hopeful.
We are dependent on our

686
00:37:10,280 --> 00:37:13,200
volunteers to help build the
homes which then helps us to

687
00:37:13,200 --> 00:37:17,760
keep the home affordable.
We have over 23,000 volunteers

688
00:37:18,760 --> 00:37:22,800
and over 234,000 hours worth of
volunteer hours.

689
00:37:23,040 --> 00:37:25,320
In the time that we've been
working here in Greenville, we

690
00:37:25,320 --> 00:37:28,280
just celebrated 40 years as of
September 20th.

691
00:37:28,280 --> 00:37:29,800
Congratulations here in
Greenville.

692
00:37:29,920 --> 00:37:34,480
Yeah, 40 years.
And so volunteering is a big

693
00:37:34,480 --> 00:37:38,120
part of that fundraising, right?
If we could get people that are

694
00:37:38,120 --> 00:37:42,120
very interested in supporting US
financially, we have to have

695
00:37:42,120 --> 00:37:43,720
that.
That's the way we move forward.

696
00:37:44,680 --> 00:37:49,600
Sticks and bricks to build our
home is 160,000 and that is

697
00:37:49,600 --> 00:37:54,160
scaling it to the necessities
$160,000.

698
00:37:54,400 --> 00:37:59,000
It wasn't $160,000 ten years
ago, 15 years ago, but in

699
00:37:59,000 --> 00:38:05,200
20252026 that's what it takes to
build a basic home for us.

700
00:38:05,200 --> 00:38:09,000
And so funding is huge.
I mentioned to you all land,

701
00:38:09,000 --> 00:38:12,080
right?
And so we have to be creative in

702
00:38:12,080 --> 00:38:15,240
how we acquire land.
And so if there are, there are

703
00:38:15,240 --> 00:38:18,320
partners out there that, you
know, have land that they're

704
00:38:18,320 --> 00:38:22,040
sitting on that they would love
to, for it to be utilized from

705
00:38:22,040 --> 00:38:25,560
an affordable perspective, we'd
love to have that conversation.

706
00:38:25,880 --> 00:38:29,680
Partnering in a, in a aspect
like that is crucial.

707
00:38:29,680 --> 00:38:33,440
We did have, you all may know
the name Creative Builders.

708
00:38:33,720 --> 00:38:37,240
They partnered with us several
years ago and they were building

709
00:38:37,240 --> 00:38:40,120
out a complex and had just a
strip of land that they couldn't

710
00:38:40,120 --> 00:38:43,880
use.
That strip of land allowed us to

711
00:38:43,880 --> 00:38:47,560
put 9 affordable homes on it.
I mean, you talking about a

712
00:38:47,600 --> 00:38:49,320
partnership?
Huge.

713
00:38:49,560 --> 00:38:53,520
That's awesome.
And so we have all of those

714
00:38:53,520 --> 00:38:58,840
components that we think, you
know, our, our community could,

715
00:38:58,840 --> 00:39:02,400
could partner with us on
habitatgreenville.org is the

716
00:39:02,400 --> 00:39:05,840
best way to get in touch with us
always.

717
00:39:05,840 --> 00:39:09,520
I believe that Habitat isn't,
does not belong to me, does not

718
00:39:09,520 --> 00:39:11,680
belong to our team.
It belongs to the community.

719
00:39:12,040 --> 00:39:17,480
And so we are always hoping that
our community will consider it a

720
00:39:17,480 --> 00:39:21,000
part of their commitment to us
and to the community and become

721
00:39:21,000 --> 00:39:23,360
involved.
Well, Latonya, we love the

722
00:39:23,360 --> 00:39:25,160
mission that you all have.
We love the work that you're

723
00:39:25,160 --> 00:39:27,400
doing here in our community.
We are so thankful that you

724
00:39:27,400 --> 00:39:29,160
would join us in the podcast and
Share your story with.

725
00:39:29,200 --> 00:39:30,080
US.
Thank you, Antonia.

726
00:39:30,280 --> 00:39:32,080
Yeah, Thank you all.
Thank you for having me.