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| Todd (left), Andy (right) |
Part 2: Andy’s Story
Have you ever wondered, “What is my life purpose?
Am I doing the things I’m here on this planet to do?”
If so, you’ll be inspired
when you read Andy’s story. This
is the second part of at two-part blog about how two leaders from the
Burlington County Habitat for Humanity who are already doing great things in
the local community went to Haiti with the Carter Work Project.
I met Andy Pagenkopf at
Panera’s in Mt. Laurel on a Saturday afternoon. It was so crowded it was hard to find a seat. I was happy to see a local business
thriving.
Once again, the magic of
Habitat connected two strangers as Andy spoke from his heart and soul about his
trip to Haiti and how it changed his life.
We started with the
basics. Andy has been on the
Property & Acquisition Committee of Habitat’s Board for about 3 years. Andy is in the construction field, so
it’s a natural fit. He sees
opportunities for growth at Burlington County Habitat and he is committed to
helping them prosper.
As soon as Andy heard
about the opportunity to build homes in Haiti he volunteered to go. He believes that Habitat is there to
help anywhere in the world, no matter how many obstacles get in the way. He thinks that the Carter project in
Haiti exemplifies this. After the
earthquake, so many people died that it was difficult for the government to
determine land ownership. There is
no infrastructure in place that makes it easy for Haiti to get worldwide
help. Land ownership is decided on
a case-by-case basis. Habitat has been willing to persevere for the past two
years through all of the government’s requirements and follow the proper
channels to bring the project to fruition.
Andy spoke of the things that touched him most
while in Haiti:
· Haiti’s
President, Michel Martelly, told the Habitat volunteers that
their work will be written in Haiti’s history books in gold (the head of Habitat in Haiti is now part of the new
President’s cabinet).
· The people of
Haiti are proud and high-spirited and even though they live in tents, their
children come to school every day well dressed in vibrant colors with “bows in
their hair and tassels on their shoes.”
· Andy worked
alongside corporate executives, famous musicians and politicians and everyone
was treated as an equal and they were all there to turn Habitat’s goal of
building 50,000 homes in the next 5 years into a reality.
Andy told me that the
reason Haiti is one of the poorest countries in the world is because they were
the first country to abolish slavery and the surrounding countries stopped
trading with them. “They were trying
to do the right thing,” he said.
I asked Andy if building in Haiti was life changing
for him. Andy told me that it has
redefined his life’s direction. He
is now working with Habitat International to bring water and solar power to
Haiti. He has been in the construction
industry for a long time and he gets pleasure helping families who can’t afford
a home get one. Initially, he got
involved with Habitat because he thought it was a “cool” organization. He now understands on a much larger
scale what Habitat means not just on a local level in Burlington County, but
worldwide.
As our meeting came to an
end, we talked about the next generation.
Andy believes that technology and social media have truly made it a
global world and the next generation will understand that this is global community
and they will take care of each other!
Thanks to Todd and Andy for sharing their stories.
For more information about how you can make a difference in Burlington County
or worldwide, contact Todd Ermer at (856) 303-8080 x 214. Todd is also happy to speak with groups about the trip to Haiti.
