From Americus to the world

By David Snell,
President

Last week the Americus City Council voted to rename Spring Street to Millard Fuller Boulevard in recognition to Millard’s many contributions to the city and the world.  (You can read all about it by clicking here.) This is an ideal street to carry Millard’s name as it goes right by the Clarence Jordan Center, Habitat’s old headquarters and, more significantly, the Global Village and Discovery Center.  This is a great place that takes visitors through a typical third world slum and opens onto a panorama of the simple, decent houses Millard championed around the world.

Speaking of around the world, it’s an exciting time for our international work.  Allen Slabaugh just came back from Nicaragua where he helped coordinate the largest Global Builders team in our history — 68 hardy souls from Countryside Mennonite Fellowship in Hawkesville, Ontario (See more about this here.).  Ryan Iafigliola is in in Haiti as I write this visiting our two sites there — Lambi and Croix-des-Bouquets.   And I’m taking off next week for a few restful days in the Democratic Republic of Congo.  I’ll be mostly in Mbandaka, celebrating 40 Years in Africa.  It was forty years ago last July that Linda and Millard landed there and started in earnest what would later become Habitat for Humanity and The Fuller Center for Housing.  It was forty years ago this month that first house was dedicated, so we’re going to rededicate it and celebrate our history.

On other international fronts we just had a Global Builders team return from Sri Lanka where they worked on two houses.  Our partners in Nigeria are kicking off a 25 unit project in Luvu, just outside of Abuja.  We have teams on tap for Peru and El Salvador.  Our partners in Armenia just announced that they will begin work in the Republic of Artsakh, a semi-autonomous, predominantly Armenian region between Armenia and Azerbaijan.  Our new covenant partner in South Africa is busy raising funds and with our new covenant partners in Australia we can say that the sun never sets on the Fuller Center.

Here in the States the southern covenant partners are getting fired up for a busy Spring Break season.  We have 14 groups signed up to work at seven covenant partners.  This Sunday Sheilla and I will travel to Snellville, GA, to look for kinfolk and receive a set of wall panels that the First Baptist Church has been putting together in its parking lot.  The panels will come down here to Americus for the Lewis house.  In mid-March 35 Bicycle Adventurers will travel down the Natchez Trace from Nashville to Jackson.  Meanwhile our friends up north are just praying for springtime. 

It’s a great time to be involved in the work of The Fuller Center.  The good Lord keeps showering us with blessings, donors and volunteers who give so generously of their resources and talents to provide God’s people in need with a decent place to call home.  There just aren’t words to express the gratitude we feel for this continuing outpouring of kindness.