University of Michigan Habitat for Humanity (UMHFH) was founded in the fall of 1996 by then first year graduate student Michael A. Carr and sophomore Eric J. Allenspach.

University of Michigan Habitat for Humanity was created as an official chapter of Habitat for Humanity International in 1996. At that time, there were only a handful of active members and a few activities. 1999 was a banner year for UMHFH, as we successfully obtained grants from Johnson and Johnson and Best Buy totaling 40,000, making our first student built house for Habitat for Humanity possible.

For the past eight years, we have co-sponsored house with other Ann Arbor organizations, but University of Michigan sources remain the largest contributions to the house. Throughout the winter semesters, we build with the Detroit affiliate to continue to offer opportunities for UM students to volunteer. Taking into consideration all of our activity, we help over 500 students volunteer to build on Habitat houses each year.

Today, we have over 1,600 members on our mailing list and a leadership core of 14 students. Our general membership consists of about 30 students who contribute by being involved with our six chapter committees, Fundraising, Campus Relations, Community Relations, Publicity and Marketing, Technology and Volunteer Coordination.

UMHFH has maintained three well-defined goals in which our efforts and activities are centered around. First, we coordinate volunteer labor for construction of Habitat houses. This labor may include students, faculty, and staff from University of Michigan, as well as Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti residents. Secondly, we raise funds for new Habitat for Humanity construction projects through various campus and community events, namely our annual Silent Auction Lastly, we educate the campus and community about homelessness and substandard housing issues.

We are currently planning our fourth Collegiate Challenge, which is our week long spring break work trip to another part of the country, where we work alongside members of the local Habitat for Humanity affiliate on their building projects. Past destinations included cities in Colorado, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina.

Other recent accomplishments include participation in the 2003 Detroit Blitz Build, Habitat for Humanity International Best Practice Chapter Status in 2002 and 2003 and local fundraising in excess of $24,000 during the 2002-2003 year to contribute toward our house and help offset our organizational expenses.

Student members also volunteer on Sunday's cooking and serving at the Delonis Center. We also participate in campus based activities such as K-Grams Kids Fair and Goodness Day.

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Information compiled from chapter historical records and documents by Jim Kumon in October 2003. Additional history items are still being reviewed and condensed to add to this summary.