.

Two families in the southern municipality of Peñuelas are now the owners of their new homes thanks to the contributions and collaboration of our corporate partners AbbVie, First Bank, Insignia Foundation, Act Society 20/22 and 3M.

Anet, beneficiary of our Affordable Housing Program, shares:

“I’ve been wanting to buy a house for years because I didn't want to rent anymore. But there’s no affordable housing, much less with the salary of a single mother. The day I got the news that I had qualified to buy the house in Caracoles neighborhood, it was a sign that everything was going to be ok. When we first entered the house, my son happily ran from one end to the other, and hugged me, crying… it was very emotional. Volunteering with Habitat Puerto Rico was a beautiful and rewarding experience, and the workshops provided helped me understand the process of buying a home in Puerto Rico. I thank God first, and then Habitat for making this dream come true.”

We handed the keys to the new owners during an event celebrated together with our various partners and the Municipality of Peñuelas. We thank everyone who opened the doors to safe affordable housing opportunities for these families.

.

After a year of working together in collaboration with other organizations and community leaders, we are happy to announce the official launch of the new interactive online platform "Risk Management Tools for Community Building", a free resource available via www.ConstruirEnComunidad.org or www.Habitatpr.org for organizations and groups interested in conducting participatory processes in communities to reduce risks, manage emergencies and promote safe housing construction and rehabilitation. A project developed by El Enjambre and commissioned by Habitat for Humanity of Puerto Rico thanks to a donation from AbbVie, this platform is an adaptation of a successful community participatory model developed by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies to Puerto Rico’s context.

ConstruirEnComunidad.org features a toolkit adaptable to different needs and work environments. You will find explanatory videos and techniques for conducting effective community meetings and activities, needs analysis and assessment tables, and resources for strategic planning, community map development, threat identification and support networks, tools to face an emergency, guides to increase home safety in case of natural disasters and hazard resistant construction, and popular education tools, among many others.

Visit Construirencomunidad.org and check out this new risk management tool for community building.

Our work would not be possible without the unwavering support and generosity of our partners who, through donations and volunteering, help us renovate smiles, spread hope and build communities. Thank you, thank you, thank you for sticking together and constructing new stories for the families and individuals we serve.

We continue to be on track to provide new housing opportunities to families and individuals in Puerto Rico’s southern region. The renovation of these homes is the result of the dedicated work of many: Habitat team, contractors and volunteers from Liberty and L'Oréal, who have joined forces to deliver a decent and safe home.

.

We inaugurated our new Habitat Builds Puerto Rico Construction Lab at the Albergue Olímpico de Puerto Rico in Salinas. This fully rehabilitated and equipped 2,724 square feet space has the capacity to receive and train 50 participants in basic construction skills including measurements and construction plans, plumbing, masonry, carpentry and electricity, among other topics. We first launched Habitat Builds Puerto Rico program in May 2021 at the University of Sacred Heart in Santurce and as of today, 146 participants have successfully completed the training. We are currently accepting applications for the Habitat Builds PR at the Albergue Olímpico in Salinas, which offers construction skills courses during the next two years. Our goal is to train 500 participants by 2023.

Participants who complete the training are equipped for entry-level construction jobs and count on our support to search for jobs in the local industry. They also receive 16 Continuing Education Credits (CEUs), an Occupational Safety and Health 10-Hour Card and a Habitat Builds Competency Certificate.

For additional information, visit www.habitatbuildspr.org or call us at (939) 415-7135.

And for the second year in a row, we ran our Summer Student Program with 7 students from various middle schools and high schools in Puerto Rico. Youth between the ages of 14 and 17 learned about the operational aspects of nonprofit organizations, in particular those of Habitat Puerto Rico, as well as delved into our construction and volunteer projects. This experience allows students to further their knowledge on topics such as philanthropy, strategy development, creativity, program implementation, and much more. Thanks to the participants of our 2022 summer program.

We are honored to be one of 12 corporations selected to partake of Guayacan Venture Accelerator 2022, an executive development program led by Grupo Guayacán that supports established companies in readiness to accelerate their growth.

Members of our Habitat Puerto Rico team are actively participating – along with other PR-based executives from the social, entertainment, food, and professional services sectors, in this advanced education process to build up our organizational capacity and service offering on the island.