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EETD Volunteers Pitch-in for Low Income Housing

EETD volunteers at the Habitat for Humanity Oakland worksite (left to right): Steve Brown, Christopher Hitchcock, Lisa Gartland, Rick Russo, Paul Ridgeway, Nathan Martin, Jiang Lin, Johanna Kollar, Lynn Price, Eric Page, Katie Whitmarsh, Dian Phylipsen

EETD volunteers at the Habitat for Humanity Oakland worksite (left to right): Steve Brown, Christopher Hitchcock, Lisa Gartland, Rick Russo, Paul Ridgeway, Nathan Martin, Jiang Lin, Johanna Kollar, Lynn Price, Eric Page, Katie Whitmarsh, Dian Phylipsen

OAKLAND, CA—Under a hot summer sun, a dozen members of LBNL's Environmental Energy Technologies Division (EETD) and their families pitched in to help build low income housing in Oakland on August 1, 1998. Giving up their Saturday to participate in the event, EETD staff and friends spent the day volunteering at the East Bay Habitat for Humanity's construction site south of the Oakland Colosseum.

Founded in 1976, Habitat for Humanity is a non-profit organization that helps finance and build low-cost housing in the U.S. and internationally. Perhaps best known as a result of the active participation of former President Jimmy Carter, Habitat relies almost exclusively on volunteer labor along with the "sweat equity" contributed by future Habitat homeowners in order to construct basic and affordable housing for qualifying families.

EETD members participated by putting up siding and roofing on several homes at East Bay Habitat's 105th Ave. worksite in Oakland. "It was very hot, but good to contribute," said Dian Phylipsen a visiting Dutch researcher, who added that she hasn't seen anything like Habitat in the Netherlands. "It was good work and good company," said Energy Analysis Department researcher Steve Brown. "I had a good time." Most participants reported they would volunteer again given the opportunity—though, not surprisingly, many indicated they would seek to work on a cooler day.

The event was informally sponsored by EETD, and organized by Steve Pickle and Nathan Martin of the Energy Analysis Department. Along with its sponsorship of a canned food drive at holiday time and its very popular series of employee and family art exhibits, EETD intends to continue to support team building and community outreach efforts like the volunteer effort at East Bay Habitat. "This type of volunteer activity is not only important and valuable but consistent with the Division's and the Lab's objective of improving the lives of Americans through hard work and public service," said EETD director Mark Levine.

EETD volunteers at the Habitat for Humanity Oakland worksite (left to right): Steve Brown, Jiang Lin, Lynn Price.

EETD volunteers at the Habitat for Humanity Oakland worksite (left to right): Steve Brown, Jiang Lin, Lynn Price.