How to Volunteer

Volunteering with Habitat for Humanity is fun and easy!

Most people think of hammers and nails when they think about volunteering for Habitat for Humanity. And that's what a lot of our volunteers do - they help us build homes in partnership with families in need. For more information, click here.

However, we have a constant need for volunteers in many other areas. Due to the tremendous amount of planning, management, fundraising, etc. required to build just one home, we rely on volunteers to help us in many areas of our day-to-day operations. The unparalleled expertise and dedication of volunteers helps Habitat-La Crosse Area grow and enables us to keep home prices low for our future homeowner families.

You don’t need to be an expert in any of these fields to help out. There are many tasks that require only a willingness to learn and work with others. To get started, fill out our online Volunteer Form.

Committees

The Construction Committee plans, schedules and organizes construction of homes while maintaining good working relationships with volunteers and homebuilders. For information, contact committee chair Mike Poellinger.

The Faith Relations Committee builds and maintains relationships with area churches, recruiting prayers, donations and volunteers. For information, contact Cori Skolaski.

The Family Selection Committee conducts searches for families who qualify to partner with Habitat for Humanity. They interview applicants, explain requirements, and research the families' needs and financial capabilities. For information, contact Kurt Schuldes.

The Habitat ReStore is a retail outlet selling new and used home improvement supplies and we need volunteer support in all areas - cashiering, data entry, volunteer coordination, inventory management, etc. For more information, click here, call 608-785-2375 or email the ReStore Manager, Steve Baker.

The Site Selection Team investigates potential sites for building or rehabilitation. For information, contact Gina Gerrard.

The Special Events Team staffs booths, make phone calls, organizes materials, and does various other jobs that come up on a fairly regular basis. One time we may ask you to help us stuff envelopes for a mailing, the next time you might be called upon to help organize a silent auction. For information, contact the volunteer coordinator.

Special Events

Our annual House of Hope event begins in April or May of each year and culminates with the Oktoberfest Parades. It relies on a lot of volunteer support. This is a great way to get (or stay) involved with Habitat for Humanity and to help us with our goal of eliminating poverty housing! The areas we need help are:

1. Board preparation. Typically, a group helps us with this project (a church youth group, a group of co-workers, or a big family reunion service project, for example). We need 15-20 people who will prepare the boards for distribution. If you have a group that would be interested, reserve your spot now! We will arrange a time based on your schedule, usually in April or early May.

2. Delivery and pick up of the House of Hope boards. The boards are 2x4's and are approx. 8' long so they don't fit in all vehicles, but if you've got a hatchback, or you can fold your back seats down, or if you've got a van, SUV, or truck, we can load them in. We need people to deliver them to area businesses and churches in June, and pick them up in early September.

3. A "board coordinator"; someone who will track these boards -- which businesses have them, which businesses want them, which volunteer delivered a board or who can deliver one and to which organization, and ensuring they get picked up in September. This is a behind-the-scenes job and can be done from your home, if you want, with just email and a telephone.

4. Phone calling. We'll send out a letter in early May to previous year's board sponsors asking them to sign up to be a sponsor again this year. However, we don't always hear back from them quickly, yet we've recruited volunteers to deliver the boards and we want to put them to work and get the boards out into the community. So we need someone to call the businesses, churches, and other groups to give them a friendly reminder. These are not cold calls or sales calls - these calls are to organizations that are friendly to Habitat for Humanity and will be nice to you on the phone. This, too, can be done from your home if you want.

5. Float construction. In early September after we've collected all the signed boards, we use some of them to build a float for the Oktoberfest Maple Leaf and Torchlight parades. We also need volunteers to string the float with lights after the Maple Leaf for the Torchlight parade. (There are just five days between the parades, so this is always a bit of a crunch and too many times Habitat for Humanity staff ends up doing it. Not that we mind, but it's more fun if we've got volunteer help!)

If any of these tasks sound fun to you, please HELP US!! Send us an email and indicate what task you're interested in doing.

Each March, we sponsor a Raise the Roof Dance Party. For more information, click here to send us an email or contact Cori Skolaski to volunteer.

The Habitat ReStore

The Habitat ReStore is a fun place to volunteer, too! For more information, click here.

Why Habitat for Humanity?

Habitat for Humanity-La Crosse Area relies on volunteers to help us tackle the problem of substandard housing in our community. We need volunteers who share our vision to eliminate inadequate housing.

Be a part of something bigger than yourself. Habitat builds across the globe and each piece of sheetrock or door that is installed is part of a worldwide movement to build homes and communities. You get to see tangible results at the end of each day. Your work results in a wall being built, a family being prepared for first-time homeownership or an empty lot being transformed into a neighborhood. Working alongside the families who will be purchasing the home is a rare occasion where you get to know those that you are partnering with.

You will develop new skills, as every volunteer learns something while working with us. You will leave a richer person than when you came. The most amazing thing that you get to experience at Habitat is that in every room or every house we build, you can see all the volunteer hands that have made it a reality.

Habitat for Humanity-La Crosse Area does not rely on government funding. Rather, we depend on the generosity of local companies and community and religious organizations to help support our work. Your contribution whether in time, materials, or funds, allows us to continue our mission.