Habitat for Humanity Stanislaus County and Habitat for Humanity Westside Merced County have merged and will be called Habitat for Humanity Merced/Stanislaus Counties, serving the entire area.
In 2022 the Habitat for Humanity Merced affiliate pivoted to become the Fuller Institute. “Presently, there exists a gap in services in Merced County and this merger provides an opportunity to expand services to the entire community while consolidating forces for the greatest good,” said Anita Hellam, Chief Executive Officer. “We’re excited to pool the talent base of our two affiliates to deliver Habitat’s program services to more people during this period of critical housing need.”
Both organizations have a long history, having been affiliated with Habitat for Humanity International, embracing the corporate vision of a world where everyone has a decent place to call home.
Habitat for Humanity Merced/Stanislaus is poised to work in areas previously underserved.
“We are in the process of expanding our Board to ensure greater representation while building and training a new workforce. There will be new opportunities for partnerships to implement program services,” said Hellam.
The agency will focus on new home construction for low-income households, critical home repairs, expanding the popular “ReStore,” where donated new and used home improvement goods are sold to the public, and expansion of housing counseling services.
“The newly formed board and our added staff bring decades of experience, opening the organization to a larger network of compassionate, caring community members that fundamentally believe what we do at Habitat: that more must be done to change the circumstances of those in need in our community,” said Lisa Mantarro Moore, acting Board Chair.
While Habitat’s current physical footprint remains at the ReStore in Modesto at 630 Kearney Ave., the organization is in the process of moving to a larger warehouse at 2206 Tenaya Ave, Modesto, and is exploring a satellite office model that can deliver its housing supportive services to more in the region.
More information can be found at www.hfhmsc.org
