Valerie Plasky, of Suamico, will lead a team of 12 people on a 16-day Habitat for Humanity Global Village project to Nepal in April. Team members are needed to build homes in Kavre Nepal, about a two-hour’s drive southeast of Nepal’s capital city of Kathmandu.
The trip will take place from April 4-19. The cost of $2,240 includes all accommodations, meals, in-country transportation, cultural activities, some sightseeing, medical and evacuation insurance, and other expenses. It does not include airfare.
No construction experience is necessary to participate.
Team members learn about poverty housing and Habitat’s ministry and mission to help eradicate it. They experience the community’s culture, language and social practices while working alongside homeowners and volunteers of all backgrounds, races and religions.
Migration and urban growth have resulted in a shortage of adequate housing in Nepal’s towns and cities, crowded living spaces and the growth of substandard housing. According to government data, nearly 430,000 families live in substandard housing. Substandard housing frequently means structures with thatched roofs and straw walls, sometimes supported by pillars made of bamboo or old timber. Water is often unsanitary, and few dwellings have toilets or electricity. These dilapidated houses are also a fire risk; nearly 10,000 families lose their homes to fire every year.
Forty-five percent of Nepal’s population lives below the poverty line, with one infant in every 10 dying before the age of 5.
The team is being led by Plasky, the office manager and former director of family ministries at St. John’s Lutheran Church, Little Suamico. An experienced Habitat for Humanity team leader, Plasky participated in Global Village builds in Tanzania, Africa, in 2007, in Santiago, Chile, in 2010 and in Chengdu, China, in 2012.
“Being involved in Habitat’s Global Village program has been life changing. I have seen first-hand the difference a decent home has made in the lives of families around the world, and I realized one person truly can make a difference,” Plasky said.
For more information or to join the team, contact Plasky at 920-434-1604 or valerieplas@new.rr.com.
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