A MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Tim Daley, Executive Director
and Mike Quick, former wide receiver from the Philadelphia Eagles, pictured at this week's Leadership Circle event
Dear Friends of Habitat for Humanity,

It’s football season once again, and with the Philadelphia Eagles looking to repeat as Super Bowl Champions, I reflect on how such great seasons come together and how hard it is to stay on top.

As the photo shows, Mike Quick, former wide receiver for the Eagles, made a visit to Reading and was Habitat’s featured speaker to “kick-off” our Leadership Circle gift drive. 
Mike spoke about how the path to success begins with the right attitude to develop the winning culture to move ahead. I think the most important aspect of his speech was the need to have an all-in commitment from everyone associated with the team, from the parking attendants to the head coach. Everyone has a part in the success.

Affordable housing has a direct relationship with health care, education and employment, and Habitat’s role is to make housing affordable for home-buyers looking to enhance their family’s future. The Buttonwood-Gateway Project will include a partnership with the Olivet’s Boy’s & Girl’s Club, free financial education courses and working with aging Americans who want to remain in their homes.

Habitat for Humanity of Berks County, like the Philadelphia Eagles, needs this community to become all-in if we are to succeed in our mission to remedy the social ills that risk our futures.

Become part of the Habitat family by volunteering on our various initiatives, donating items to the Habitat ReStore or by making a gift to support our financial needs.

Best Wishes,
Tim Daley
LEADERSHIP CIRCLE EVENT WITH
MIKE QUICK FROM THE PHILADELPHIA EAGLES!
Thank you to all of the guests who attending the inaugural Leadership Circle event held at the Berkshire Country Club on August 28th. Guests were treated to cocktails and  hors d'oeuvres while learning more about Habitat Berks and our impact on the community.

Our featured speaker was Mike Quick , former wide receiver with the Philadelphia Eagles, who shared stories of his path to success and treated the guests to the opportunity to see and hold his Super Bowl ring! Mike spoke of his path to success and encouraged us to follow the winning formula of the Eagles by having a culture of being "ALL IN" as an organization and a community.
 
With that in mind, Dick Ehst of Customers Bank pledged
$250,000 in matching funds. Every dollar raised will be matched up to $250,000!
 
This is an incredible opportunity to help Habitat in our vision for the future to make our community and residents stronger, self-reliant and stable.
 
Thank you to those guests who met the challenge and signed your pledge cards last night. Your support is appreciated!
 
We encourage you to consider joining our Leadership Circle
by making a gift or pledge of $5000 per year for three years,
but gifts of any size will be eligible for the match.
Please share with your friends, family and colleagues to help us
maximize the generous support from
Dick Ehst and Customers Bank!
 
Gifts can be made via our website or by mailing a check to:
Habitat for Humanity of Berks County
531 Canal Street, Suite 404
Reading PA 19602
 
For more information or to make your pledge, please email
Director of Development & Marketing
610-373-3439 x 307


Special thanks to Mike Quick and our event sponsors, BNY Mellon, Customers Bank, and Penske, for making the evening possible!
DID YOU KNOW?
Families who purchase Habitat for Humanity homes must first contribute 300 hours of construction labor on a Habitat home,
a contribution we call “sweat-equity.” 
Homes are sold to the families at no profit and financed by Habitat for Humanity with little or no interest mortgages. The payments made by the families on their mortgages are then used to build more homes in our community. This process allows us to provide first-time home buyers a
“hand-up” rather than a “hand-out,” while also providing a way for good people to assist hard-working families in our community.
THANK YOU TO
TOM HEFFNER AND
ABOUT ALL FLOORS!
We received a generous donation of 175 new carpets from About All Floors . Proceeds from the sale of the carpets (see them for yourself at our ReStore in Temple!) will assist us in our mission, and we're so grateful to them for their support!

There is such an abundance of carpets that we decided to share some of them with our community partners whose residents suffered in the recent flooding. Pottsville Housing Authority picked up approximately 50 rugs to give to area residents, and our ReStore volunteers helped to load the truck. Giving back to the community feels good!
BUTTONWOOD-GATEWAY PROJECT

The Buttonwood Gateway Project site presents a unique opportunity for re-investment into an urban area that has – for too long – been in decline and disrepair. Habitat is positioned to be part of a unified effort that encompasses private development, city government and Habitat’s unique program for home ownership.

Habitat will be constructing new housing as well as rehabilitating existing dwellings for Habitat Home Buyers. The influence of a Habitat neighborhood project has proven to improve quality of life for families through better healthcare, education and employment conditions. Our families become stronger, more stable and self-reliant with a promising future.

The Buttonwood Gateway Project is located at one of three main access points into the City of Reading . Here, there is high traffic volume and visibility. This site and our project will affirm that areas once thought to be too run-down can rise up and once again be healthy, productive neighborhoods .

Home ownership is an essential element to creating clean and safer neighborhoods in which people can live and thrive. Habitat’s requirements of 300 hours of “sweat equity” and financial education make us a one-of-a-kind housing agency for families seeking to become Habitat home buyers.
Our new website is now much more user-friendly, informative and visually appealing.
In addition to great information about who we are and what we do, our new site includes the ability to shop online at our ReStore! You'll find a selection of featured items that will change periodically, giving you an idea of what we have to offer at the ReStore.
Simply browse, select your items, check out and then stop by the ReStore to pick them up!
HABITAT'S SECOND CLUSTER BUILD:
UPDATE ON TULPEHOCKEN STREET
The Tulpehocken street project is making great progress ! We are so thankful to our team of volunteers working alongside our foreman, Jim Talarico and Director of Construction, Mike Rodino.

Our current cluster build on Tulpehocken Street follows the same concept of newly renovated homes that protect the architectural integrity of its surrounding. Two families who are currently participating in our program are working towards owning these homes by completing 300 hours of sweat equity with 75 hours of economic literacy education.

If you know of a family who might be a good fit for our program and who would like to own one of these homes, please reach out to our Director of Family Services, Penny Hummel.
Photos depict progress on Tulpehocken Street.
Please contact us if you'd like to tour the properties!
STAFF CHANGES AT HABITAT!
Please join us in welcoming Molly McCullough Murrill to the Habitat staff. Our new Director of Development & Marketing, Molly is originally from Berks County and has returned to the area after living most recently in the U.S. Virgin Islands, where her last 9 years have been spent as Communications Director & Assistant to the Director of Advancement for an independent school. Molly is excited to be back in Berks County and looks forward to getting to know our Habitat supporters and putting her fundraising experience to use here. Please reach out to Molly at any time to discuss ways to support Habitat!
Stephanie Michel joined the Habitat staff as Office Manager last April. Stephanie is a 2017 graduate of Albright College and is originally from New York City, where she has decided to return at the end of September. Stephanie quickly learned the ins and outs of all things Habitat, and we'll miss having her on the team! Feel free to reach out to her to ask questions; she's a great source of information!
We'd like to extend our gratitude to Prasaadi Dangolla , who has left her position of Director of Development & Marketing to pursue a career change out of state. Prasaadi started as an intern with Habitat during her time at Albright College and quickly earned her spot as a valuable member of the team. We're sad to see her go but wish her the best in her future endeavors!
VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT
We'd like to extend our appreciation to Alan Loos, long-time Habitat Berks volunteer. Now retired, Al enjoys spending time at our build sites and is currently helping out on Tulpehocken Street. Thank you, Al, for all you do for Habitat for Humanity of Berks County!
THANK YOU!
Without our volunteers and donors, we would not be able to do this important work in our community.

Giving generously to the essential work of providing the less fortunate in our community the boost that they need to become
self-sufficient revitalizes our neighborhoods, which helps us all.