Groundwork For A Better St. Louis: Dirxion & Habitat for Humanity

Over the course of just a day, a group of unlikely heroes – more familiar with cubicles and keyboards – bared the elements and took their carpentry skills from laughable to workable. As volunteers for the St. Louis branch of Habitat for Humanity, Dirxion employees spent most of their Saturday going back and forth between two of the nearly twenty-five houses being simultaneously developed for a large Habitat for Humanity undertaking in North St. Louis. Some wielded hammers, others installed siding, and a few were building and falling through front porches. No matter what the task, our colleagues were like ants on a log, working together with conviction.

Habitat for Humanity, a non-profit organization, works with local companies and volunteers to eliminate substandard housing in struggling neighborhoods while creating affordable housing for the less fortunate. The program transforms these run-down areas and abandoned properties into beautiful streets and exceptional homes. As a policy, future homeowners of these Habitat houses invest hundreds of hours of their own labor in the way of sweat equity. Alongside volunteers, they happily contribute to the labor of building their own house and the houses of their future neighbors. The organization then finances these homes to them with no-interest loans, and because the bulk of materials and labor are donated, the homeowner’s mortgage payments can be used to build more Habitat for Humanity houses.

The program is something to be proud of. It’s a real win-win situation for the community and a rewarding experience for all those who participate. Nathan Phillips, from Dirxion’s Product Placement Department, said about his experience:

“It was definitely a team effort. There was lots of gravity defying ladder work with hammers and nails. All in all, it was a success and I feel like we accomplished a lot. We showed up to work hard and help make a difference in our community and we saw results! Go Dirxion and go St. Louis!”

Regardless of your level of experience, there are many ways to contribute to the mission of Habitat for Humanity. We encourage you to get in touch with someone at your local branch. Visit Habitat.org.