In 1993, fifteen students went on an Alternative Spring
Break (ASB) trip from Keene State College (KSC) to Pittsburg, PA, and upon return decided to form
a chapter of Habitat for Humanity (HFH) at KSC. A Habitat for Humanity International
(HFHI) representative visited the college to speak to the students about how to form a campus chapter of HFH. During the time before an official chapter was formed, the KSC students began to form a close relationship
with an HFH affiliate in Brattleboro, VT. Then in the spring of 1994 the KSC Student Government gave the students a charter and funding to officially
form the KSC campus chapter of HFH. The KSC chapter entered as the 190th
campus chapter nationwide, and now there are over 700.
Throughout the 10 years that the KSC campus chapter has been in existence they have been very active in many builds,
including assisting to build about fifteen homes locally. During this time
the Monadnock Affiliate of HFH was formed, opening many building opportunities for the KSC students. The ASB trips have assisted in the completion of approximately 100 homes in various parts of the Eastern
United States. The Global Village program of HFH has allowed KSC
students to work on several homes in the Dominican Republic,
Costa Rica, and Guatemala.
During its existence, the KSC campus chapter has received several awards, most notably an award for fundraising
efforts in 1995, the Governor Monadnock Region Volunteer Award in 1998, and in 2003 the Most Innovative Campus Chapter in
the Northeast for which they received a golden hammer.
In addition to the numerous events and builds, the members of the KSC chapter is one of the few campus chapter who
participated in tithing. This means that the campus chapter donates some of the
money they raise to another country to support a build internationally. They have sent $750
for the last two years to Baptala, India and with a matching donation from the local Monadnock HFH affiliate, were able to
build two homes with these donations. The tithing program is something the chapter tries to support and promote
through events such as Habifest, an event the chapter has participated in the past few years.
The purpose of Habifest is to celebrate all that HFH does for campus chapters nationwide and KSC uses this opportunity
to promote the various international programs they are involved in as well as the local projects.
Although it is obvious that Keene State College Habitat for Humanity has done a lot in a short time there is still
more work to be done!
