Meeting Great People; Lorraine Williams/100th Habitat House

Sometimes in my job, I have the opportunity to meet some great people. I had that opportunity this past year working on a long term project about the 100th house built by the Arundel Habitat for Humanity. We had been running a twice-monthly photo feature on two full pages of our paper every other Saturday. I heard about the 100th house and thought it would make a great long-term feature. I would follow it from the wall-raising ceremony until the homeowner Lorraine Williams took possession of the finished house.

I wrote of meeting some great people, and to tell the truth, all the people I met through this story were great people. Habitat has a few paid staffers, but for the most part it is made up of volunteers. These people give their time and hard work to those who need a helping hand to own a home of their own. Many are with church groups and most of the work is done on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Some have carpentry experience, but many don’t - they just want to help others.

There was Eric Knapp, the construction supervisor with Habitat for Humanity. He was the field general in charge of the actual construction. He showed the volunteers what to do and made things run as smoothly as possible. He had the honor of handing over the keys to Lorraine at the home’s dedication ceremony.

Some of the standout volunteers that I saw on my many trips to the house were Bill Lovelace, Warren Cook and Pastor Jim Stutler. I am sure I am leaving out many others, but I was only there a small portion of the time. All the volunteers deserve credit, and they are doing wonderful things for those in need.

Then there is Lorraine Williams, a three-year cancer survivor with a very deep religious belief. I don’t know of anyone more deserving of a home of her own than Lorraine. The first day I met her in February I told her of my mom’s own battle with cancer. Lorraine said she would pray for her, and I thought that was sweet but something people say while you are there. Six months later, when I met Lorraine at the title agency where she would sign her deed. One of the first things out of her mouth was “Hi Paul, how is your mother doing? I have been praying for her.” I was shocked that, first of all, she remembered my name because I had not seen her since the wall-raising. Second, I was surprised that she remembered about my mom and cared to ask. My mom’s cancer is in remission for now and she is told she is cancer free.

Lorraine is a great lady, and I wish her many wonderful years in her new home. She had to do 400 hours of volunteer work with Habitat to qualify for her home, and I am sure she will continue even after that. All the people with Habitat do a wonderful job and we should try and support that effort if we can.

Here is a link to my audio slide show on The Capital’s website http://media.hometownannapolis.com/flash/2008/08/23sshta/index.html

And here are some links to the local and international Habitat for Humanity sites

Anne Arundel Habitat for Humanity http://www.arundelhabitat.org/

Habitat for Humanity International http://www.habitat.org/