PAGE OCR 2 – March 2009 – The Ontario Construction Report
Habitat founder passes away at age 74
STAFF WRITER – The OCR Construction Report
some would say that should be enough to make anyone
happy, Fuller wasn’t satisfied. His marriage and health
The construction industry has lost a hero.
began to suffer, and it was time for a change.
Millard Fuller, who founded Habitat for Humanity In-
That change came in drastic form. Fuller and his wife,
ternational and the Fuller Center for Housing, passed away
Linda, sold all of their possessions and gave the money to
on February 3 at the age of 74.
the poor. Beginning anew, they found Koinonia Farm, a
“Millard Fuller was a force of nature who turned a sim-
Christian community just outside of Americus, Georgia.
ple idea into an international organization that has helped
There, Fuller began learning from the community’s founder,
more than 300,000 families move from deplorable housing
Clarence Jordan.
into simple, decent homes they helped build and can afford
In time, the pair began a ministry of housing, where they
to buy and live in,” said Jonathan Reckford, chief executive
built simple homes for families with low income. The idea
officer of Habitat for Humanity International. “(He) was a
was to engage the receiving family in the construction of
true giant in the affordable housing movement.”
the house, thus reducing labour and overall costs on the
Fuller’s story is one of ups and downs.
project. The money from the home went into a revolving
He was a millionaire by the young age of 29, and while
fund, where it would be used to fund another home, and so
on.
The first home built through this ministry was dedicated
in 1969. In 1973, the Fullers took their concept to Africa,
where they began replacing mud-and-thatch homes with
simple concrete-block homes.
It was during his time in Africa that Fuller had the idea
to expand the program. In 1976, upon returning to the
United States, he founded Habitat for Humanity Interna-
tional. By the organization’s 25th anniversary, tens of thou-
sands of people were volunteering with Habitat, and more
than 500,000 people were living in Habitat homes.
In 2005, after separating from Habitat for Humanity In-
ternational, the Fullers founded the Fuller Center for Hous-
ing to continue the fight against poverty housing.
Former President Bill Clinton said: “I don’t think it’s an
exaggeration to say that Millard Fuller has literally revolu-
tionized the concept of philanthropy.”
In 1996, President Clinton awarded Fuller the Presiden-
tial Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honour.
“Millard Fuller has done as much to make the dream of
home ownership a reality in our country and throughout the
world as any living person,” he said during the presenta-
tion.
Fuller has received countless awards for his work
throughout the years, however the true testament to his suc-
cess is the thousands of families who have a place to live
thanks to his work. He touched families here in Canada, and
across the globe.
“Millard Fuller’s drive and relentless commitment to af-
fordable housing captured people’s imagination and
changed lives around the world,” said J. Ronald Terwilliger,
chair of Habitat for Humanity’s International Board of Di-
rectors in a press release. “His inspiration lives on in Habi-
tat’s work and through its employees, volunteers, partner
families and supporters.”
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