Columbus
Global Village
Team

Community Connections

ReStore

Columbus, Ohio
Photo courtesy of Dave Bezaire

Susi's creativity is reflected in many "firsts" as a volunteer fundraiser and program developer for Habitat for Humanity—Greater Columbus. In 1995, she secured a 10-year donation of a 10,000 sq. ft. building and convinced the board to develop Ohio's first ReStore, which has grown into a $1.2 million funding source in 2010. In 1992, she co-chaired Ohio's first Women's Build.

In the 1995, Susi and her friend Evy Locklin created the Adopt-A-House program to assemble unique partnerships of churches and corporations that have funded and built over 100 houses.

In 2000, while acting as Interim Executive Director for 8 months, Susi partnered with a commercial house builder to help defray development costs and created the first "blended" neighborhood, mixing Habitat families with conventional home buyers.

Bakwena chief
Molepolole, Botswana
Photo courtesy of Susi Havens-Bezaire

Susi's passion for advocacy extends overseas as well. Tribal and community leaders in places like Molepolole, Botswana and Awaso, Ghana have attended their first Habitat dedications at her invitation.

House Lead

House move

Columbus, Ohio
Photo courtesy of Dave Bezaire

One of Dave's favorite thrills is to partner with a family and hundreds of other volunteers to build a house from beginning to end. As the House Lead on 10 homes, he has been taught the skills and techniques for framing, siding, drywall, vinyl flooring, painting and finish carpentry.

Houses led to-date include:

• Elmi Home (Willow Run Avenue, Columbus, Ohio, 2011)
• John G. McCoy Project (McCoy Circle, Columbus, Ohio, 2008)
• Thompson-Weiler Project (Schultz Avenue, Columbus, Ohio, 2007)
• Ohio State Fair 2005 (Grasmere Avenue, Columbus, Ohio, 2005)
• Building on a Dream (Harvard Avenue, Columbus, Ohio, 2004)
• Nationwide Insurance Company (Hanford Street, Columbus, Ohio, 2003)
• Ohio State Fair 2003 (Atwood Terrace, Columbus, Ohio, 2003)
• Nationwide Insurance Company (Parkwood Street, Columbus, Ohio, 2002)
• Ohio State Fair 2001 (Seventeenth Avenue, Columbus, Ohio, 2001)
• Building on Faith 2000 (Aberdeen Avenue, Columbus, Ohio, 2000)

On the road

Dave & Susi have worked with Habitat for Humanity in a number of other cities in the U.S.A. including: Tucson 2010, Bay St. Louis 2009, and Detroit 2005.