Habitat for Humanity

History

Today Habitat for Humanity is one of the largest, most well-known and respected nonprofits in the world. Habitat for Humanity was officially founded in 1976 by Millard and Linda Fuller (Habitat, 2013). The concept that grew into Habitat for Humanity was born in a small Christian community in Georgia in 1942. It started out as 42 half-acre housing sites and after years of developing, funding, and support Habitat for humanity is now a true leader in addressing the issue of poverty housing with having repaired more than 60,000 homes and helping more than 3 million people around the world. Independent Sector refers to a nonprofit as what a tax code classifies as charitable or 501(c)(3) (Independent Sector, 2013) and Habitat for Humanity happens to be a International Christian Nonprofit. Habitat for Humanity is international which means it is worldwide and believes that every man, woman and child should have a decent, safe and affordable place to live.

Mission Statement

Almost every organization has a mission or something they stand for along with a vision or where they would like to see the organization go in the future. An introduction to the Nonprofit Sector defines a mission statement as a “succinct description of the basic purpose of the organization, including the nature of work to be carried out, the reason the organization exists, and the clients and constituencies it is designed to serve” (Grobman, 2011). The mission statement is supposed to serve two main purposes; a basic guide for decision-making and provide a useful short description of the organization. That is exactly what Habitat for Humanity’s mission statement does. Their mission statement is “Seeking to put God’s love into action, Habitat for Humanity brings people together to build homes, communities and hope” (Habitat, 2013). It is both a basic guide and a short description that focuses on the organization’s demonstration of their Christian aspect and advocating affordable housing all while promoting hope and support. Along with the mission statement an organization’s vision statement also serves a purpose. According to Gorbman a vision statement’s purpose is to “convey the ideal future of the organization; what it hopes to become in the eyes of its board, staff, and stakeholders” (Grobman, 2011). Habitat for humanity’s vision statement is “A world where everyone has a decent place to live” (Habitat, 2013). Much like its vision statement it is short, clear, and concise what the organization hopes to become.

Major Sources of Support

Nonprofits are not the same as your ordinary For-profit business. They are not the same in that they are exactly what their name states. Nonprofits do not make money to run their organization whereas For-profits do. So to keep the organization running they have to