Evansville (February 3, 2009) – Millard Fuller, the founder of Habitat for Humanity International who devoted his life to building homes for people in need, died Feb. 3 in Americus, Ga. after complaining of chest pains, headache and difficulty swallowing. He was 74.

Jim Prickett, an Evansville pastor who served on the first board of directors for Habitat for Humanity International, remembered Fuller as an inspirational leader who could assemble a group of supporters almost immediately.

“You knew you better have your bags packed if you heard Millard speak,” Prickett said.

Habitat for Humanity began as an experiment at Koinonia Farm, a Christian community that espoused racial justice in Americus, Ga. Fuller and his wife, Linda, spent several months there in the early 1970s after recommitting their lives to God and giving away the wealth they had accumulated from Millard’s work as a lawyer and entrepreneur. The concept was simple – help build homes with the poor and then pool the mortgage payments into a Fund for Humanity to build more homes.

Prickett met Fuller in 1973 while serving as pastor at Bethel United Church of Christ in Evansville. Fuller was invited to speak about his mission trips in Zaire, Africa, where he had renovated a brick factory and had been building homes for the poor. Fuller had taken his home-building concept to Africa after seeing success at Koinonia. He wanted to see if it would work in a third-world country.

The plan did work, and Fuller returned to Americus with dreams of creating a program that would help any family anywhere. He then called a meeting of 27 people who believed in his mission, including Prickett and Jim Perigo, a life-long member of Bethel UCC. For three days, Perigo and Prickett met in what Prickett describes as a “chicken coup” with Fuller and the others and formalized plans for Habitat for Humanity International.

After that initial meeting in Americus, Prickett returned to Evansville but continued to yearn for a greater role with Habitat. He and his wife, Janette, who currently is the assistant office manager for Habitat for Humanity of Evansville, joined Fuller in Americus and stayed on for 26 months, watching it grow from an idea to a full-fledged Christian housing ministry.

Jim Prickett was the first director of administration, and Janette Prickett set up the first accounting system. Janette Prickett was also “den mother” to the 20 or so volunteers who would converge in Americus during the summer months to help build homes. On a typical Friday evening, the couple would open their 900-square-foot home to the volunteers for dinner.

“There would be 24 in that little space,” Jim Prickett said. “There wasn’t anything else going on at that time in Americus. There was nowhere else for them to go.”

When Jim Perigo first heard Fuller speak at Bethel UCC, he was hooked.

“We thought he was so powerful,” he said.

Bethel helped financially support those first homes in Zaire, Africa, and Perigo was appointed to serve on the first board of advisors to Habitat for Humanity International. It wasn’t long before Perigo wanted to create an affiliate in Evansville, however.

“There were four of us who served on the advisory board who thought the Habitat philosophy would be perfect for Evansville,” Perigo said. “We’d be all fired up after hearing Millard speak and then come home and want to do something here. I was ready to come back home and tear Evansville down and start over.”

Those efforts led to the creation of the Evansville affiliate in 1984. Since its inception, it has built 351 homes and will this year celebrate 25 years of building houses and building hope. The Evansville affiliate also ranks fourth among affiliates similar in size for its tithing program.

Fuller visited Evansville for a one-week blitz in 1992 during which 21 homes were built, a record for that time. He also attended several dedications throughout the years.

“He gave a pep talk to about 900 people and got us all fired up to do the blitz,” Perigo said. “It was awesome.”

The news of Fuller’s death came as a surprise to the Pricketts and Perigo. Jim Perigo hadn’t seen Fuller in some time, but Jim and Janette Prickett had spoken with Millard and Linda Fuller at Christmas, and they regularly exchange emails with them.

“To have been a part of Habitat has been an awesome experience, a humbling experience,” Perigo said.

Fuller will be buried at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Koinonia Farm. Visitation is tonight at First Presbyterian Church in Americus, Ga. from 6-8 p.m.

About Habitat for Humanity of Evansville
Founded in 1984, Habitat for Humanity of Evansville is a nonprofit Christian ministry whose mission is to build and sell simple, decent houses to hardworking families in Vanderburgh and Posey counties. We partner with individuals, churches, businesses and civic organizations who share our vision to make adequate, affordable housing for all a matter of conscience and action.

To be eligible, families must have incomes at or below 60 percent of the area median income. They must have a need for housing, be willing to contribute 300 hours in sweat equity and have the ability to pay their mortgage based on a 25-year, no-interest loan.

For more information, go to www.evansvillehabitat.org or call (812) 423-5623.