 Habitat for Humanity International Records, Series 1.6: Papers - Newsletters
Collection DescriptionHistorical NoteHabitat for Humanity International is a non-profit Christian housing ministry founded by Millard and Linda Fuller in 1976. The organization works to build decent, safe housing for needy families and individuals around the world. Its operational headquarters are located in Americus, GA, and its administrative headquarters are in Atlanta. Habitat operates on the community level through independent local affiliates and performs work internationally through national offices. The concept for Habitat began at Koinonia farm, a small, interracial community outside of Americus, GA. This community was founded by farmer and biblical scholar Clarence Jordan in 1942. In 1965, the Fullers visited Koinonia and, together with Jordan, developed the idea of "partnership housing," a system in which those in need of housing would work side by side with volunteers to build simple, decent houses. In 1976, Habitat for Humanity International was officially established. Former U. S. President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn Carter got involved in 1984 with the first Jimmy Carter Work Project. Since then, the Carters have been consistent supporters of Habitat, giving it a national and international spotlight. In 2005, Fuller was dismissed from Habitat for Humanity amid unresolved disputes and established the Fuller Center for Housing. Jonathan Reckford took the position of executive director. As of 2013, Habitat for Humanity has built over 600,000 homes, eliminating poverty housing or homelessness for 3 million people worldwide. Scope and ContentThe newsletters document information that Habitat for Humanity disseminated to its staff, volunteers, and the general public from its formative years on into the 21st century. The older portion of these periodicals represent some of the earliest documents in the Habitat for Humanity records. They provide insight into the development and operation of Koinonia Farm (now Koinonia Partners) and how Habitat for Humanity grew out of this small, interracial, Christian farming community in Sumter County, Georgia. The Koinonia newsletters also report on the intimidation and violence directed toward the farm--peaking in the late 1950s--because of its interracial status. Beginning in 1976, the periodicals focus on Habitat for Humanity as an established organization through publications like Habitat Happenings, Habitattler, Habitat World, and Habichat. New issues of Habitat World are continually added to the collection as they are published and received. Some of these newsletters share information about the internal operations of Habitat for an audience of volunteers and staff, while others report on major projects and events for a general readership. Organization and ArrangementThe materials are arranged chronologically. This finding aid represents just one portion of the Habitat for Humanity International Records, which altogether consist of correspondence, event files, administrative files, affiliate files, media project files, newsletters, clippings, and print samples, as well as photographs, artifacts, and audiovisual materials. Administrative InformationPreferred CitationHabitat for Humanity International Records, ms 3786, Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library, The University of Georgia Libraries. Finding Aid PublicationFinding aid prepared on: 2014. Related Materials and SubjectsSubject TermsRelated Collections in this RepositoryRelated collections in the Hargrett Library include the Millard and Linda Fuller papers, ms 3770, the Fuller Center for Housing records, ms 3771, Koinonia Farm photographs, ms 3049, Clarence L. Jordan papers, ms 756, ms 2340, and ms 2341. Related audiovisual materials from this collection are housed in the Walter J. Brown Media Archive: http://purl.libs.uga.edu/brown/har-ms3786/bmac-coll | ||||||||||||||||||