Mal Murray received Habitat for Humanity International’s 2010 Clive Rainey Lifetime Achievement Award for his efforts to help make simple, decent, affordable housing possible in partnership with low-income families.  Meanwhile, Our Towns Habitat for Humanity received a $2,500 grant recently from Charlotte-area Realtors.

HONORS FOR MAL MURRAY

Mal Murray has been a Habitat for Humanity volunteer for more than 25 years.  He learned about the local affiliate and mission by first working on a Sardis Presbyterian sponsored home and was hooked from that point forward.  Since then he has volunteered for countless local home builds, served on the Family Selection Committee, Resource Development Committee, and Land Committee and is currently the VP for our Finance Committee.    He has served on the Board of Directors for several years and was President of the Board for four years.

“I am so grateful for the opportunity to help a family obtain the dream of homeownership,” said Murray, “and for the opportunity to work with other Habitat for Humanity volunteers to help make a difference in my community and the world.”

Mal’s efforts were instrumental in recruiting various long-term, leading volunteers for the affiliate and his leadership and guidance is priceless.  “In a recent Board of Directors meeting,” said Amy Hartman, Board Member, Women Build and Resource Development volunteer, “ we each were asked to introduce ourselves, tell how we got involved with Our Towns Habitat for Humanity and how many years we have been involved.  Over 75% of the Board members were recruited by Mal!!!”
Mal’s creativity has been instrumental to Our Towns Habitat for Humanity for growth.  With his leadership we have been able to capture crucial funding over the years and secure land for the next four years.  Mal has also promoted and volunteered for several of our Global Village trips to Guatemala.

It is because of volunteers like Mr. Murray that Our Towns Habitat for Humanity has served 193 families locally and 1066 globally since 1988.  In addition, we were able to successfully introduce our new ReHabitat Program (Critical Repair, Weatherization, Recycles and A Brush with Kindness) in July 2010.
Each year, Habitat for Humanity International recognizes four volunteers in the United States with the Clive Rainey Lifetime Achievement Award.  Award winners act as builders, fundraisers, advocates and more to further Habitat’s mission of eliminating poverty housing.

About Clive Rainey
In 2010, Habitat for Humanity’s Lifetime Achievement Award was renamed The Clive Rainey Lifetime Achievement Award in honor of “Habitat for Humanity International’s first volunteer.”  One year after Habitat for Humanity International’s founding, Clive Rainey served as a general volunteer in Americus, Ga., doing whatever needed to be done, from stuffing envelopes to building houses. Rainey served as HFHI’s first director in Africa and then used his skills to raise awareness and resources for Habitat’s work worldwide as HFHI’s former director of community relations.  Rainey currently resides in Guatemala and helps support Habitat Guatemala and serve in another local ministry that rescues homeless children from the streets.

REALTORS GIVE GRANTS TO HABITAT GROUPS

Our Towns Habitat for Humanity is among a group of local Habitat for Humanity chapters to receive grants recently from the  Charlotte Regional Realtor Association Housing Opportunity Foundation.   Grants through the Habitat Support Program totaled $22,500. Cornelius-based Our Towns Habitat received $2,500 to cover the cost of exterior doors at three town homes.

“We recognize the role that Habitat for Humanity plays in meeting crucial housing needs at a very basic level for many in the area,” said Laurie Knudsen, president of the association and Carolina Multiple Listings Services Inc.

Other $2,500 grants went to Habitat groups in area counties, cities and towns, including Charlotte. ith very little heat.