About Habitat
Our Founding & Leadership
Our Vision & Mission | Habitat's Founding | Our Leadership Team
Our Vision
A world where everyone has a decent place to live.
Our Mission
Seeking to put God's love into action, Habitat for Humanity brings people together to build homes, communities and hope.
We build strength, stability and self-reliance through shelter.
STRENGTH
A Habitat home is a strong foundation for a family, an opportunity on which they can build a better life.
A home that is clean, safe and pest-free helps to keep our vulnerable elderly healthy and strong.
STABILITY
A Habitat home is a stabilizing force for a family with better living conditions & improved health.
A proper place to call home gives our vulnerable elderly peace of mind to enjoy their golden years worry-free.
SELF-RELIANCE
A decent place to live and an affordable loan help homeowners save more, invest in education, and have more financial stability.
A proper home also provides a safe place for our vulnerable elderly to age independently.
Habitat's Founder
Founded by the late Millard Fuller and his wife Linda in 1976, Habitat for Humanity started off as a grassroots efforts on a community farm in Georgia, United States. The concept of "partnership housing" centered on those in need of adequate shelter working side by side with volunteers to build decent, affordable houses.
In 1973, the Fullers decided to take the concept to Zaire, now the Democratic Republic of Congo. After three years of hard work to launch a successful house building program there, the Fullers then returned to the United States and called together a group of supporters to discuss the future of their dream: Habitat for Humanity International.
Since then, Habitat has grown into an international housing organisation with affiliates in over 70 countries around the world. Habitat believes in builds with and for people of all backgrounds, races & religion, and has provided safe, decent shelter for more than 9.8 million people in over 3,000 communities in North America, Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, Europe and throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
“I see life as both a gift and a responsibility. My responsibility is to use what God has given me to help his people in need.”
―Millard Fuller, co-founder of Habitat for Humanity
Habitat for Humanity Singapore
Habitat Singapore is part of the international Habitat non-profit organisation that seeks to eliminate poverty housing worldwide. Convicted that safe and affordable housing provides a path out of poverty, we have been working alongside low-income communities to increase their access to improved living conditions. Since 2004, Habitat Singapore regularly sends volunteer teams to build decent and affordable houses across Asia-Pacific. Locally, we provide an intensive home rehabilitation programme for vulnerable individuals and families so they can have a safe & sanitary place to call home.
Habitat Singapore's Leadership
Mr. S. Dhanabalan
Mr. Foo Chai Yee (Chairman)
Mr. Foo Chai Yee was on the very first board of Habitat for Humanity Singapore, and has graciously agreed to return to the board since 2016. Mr. Foo is an architect, and has participated in Habitat builds abroad as a volunteer even before the formation of Habitat Singapore.
Mr. Choo Chin Tuan, Theodore (Vice-Chairman)
Mr. Ted Choo is a strong Habitat supporter and active volunteer for social causes, having been involved in many Habitat projects, from house-cleaning to house building. Mr Choo is the marketing director at a local university and has been on the board since 2016.
Mr. Joseph Scaria
Mr. Joseph Scaria is the Resource Development Director of Habitat for Humanity Asia Pacific. He resides in Bangkok, and helps advise Habitat Singapore on fundraising strategies, and coordinates all the fundraising efforts across the Asia-Pacific region.
Ms. Usha Menon
Ms. Usha Menon is certainly no stranger to Habitat Singapore, having been the person responsible for the sourcing of volunteers from the Singapore office while she was Resource Development Director at the Habitat Asia-Pacific office. Ms. Menon is now a highly sought-after consultant for non-profit management and training.
Ms. Ng Siew Geck, Vincy
Ms. Vincy Ng provides valuable support to Habitat Singapore with her expertise in human resource management and governance issues.
Ms. Sharon Cheah Ui-Hoon
Ms. Sharon Cheah's journey with Habitat Singapore started way back in 2009 and probably has the most number of Global Village trips under her belt. To date, Sharon has participated in 9 builds in countries like Korea, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Mongolia, Cambodia and India. She also supports the Resource Development team with her expertise in corporate communications.
Mr. Thomas Lim
Mr. Thomas Lim has been a Project HomeWorks Champion for the last 5 years and counting. His professional background in Human Resources and great people management skills is the reason why Thomas is one of our best volunteer leaders. To date, he has led various corporate, individual and youth volunteer groups in serving over 40 vulnerable homes in Singapore.
Ms. Adeline Khoo
Ms. Adeline Khoo is an Operations and Administrative Manager in a Single Family Office. She has been an active volunteer in both our Global Village builds and Project HomeWorks programme since 2013.
Mr. Chan Bing Hung, Ivan
Mr. Ivan Chan joined the board 2017.
Mr. Daniel See
Mr. Daniel See is a lawyer and strong Habitat supporter. He has participated in many Project HomeWorks sessions and lends his expertise to Habitat Singapore especially in the area of legal concerns. He has served on the board for many years.
Mr. Alvin Liew
Mr. Alvin Liew is an economist and an active volunteer for Habitat for Humanity, participating in several house-builds in the region. He appears regularly on television, often being interviewed for his opinion on financial trends.
Mr. Richard Giam
Mr. Richard Giam is the founder of Rainmaker, a values-driven community of entrepreneurs, professionals and like-minded individuals. He is also an award winning entrepreneurial fundraiser with over 22 years of proven track record in business development, sales, marketing communications and fundraising.
Ms. Christina Lu
Ms. Christina Lu is the HR Head APAC at Neste APAC Pte Ltd, the world’s largest producer of Renewable Aviation Fuel and global producer of renewable diesel. She is a strategic HR leader with extensive experience in culture transformation & organisation development in start-ups, new businesses, merger & acquisition and joint ventures.
Our Board Advisors
Mr. Willie Tan
Mr Willie Tan works to promote trade between Singapore and Hong Kong. He has been helping Habitat connect with various people of influence to advance the Habitat cause.
Our Patron
Mr. S. Dhanabalan
Habitat for Humanity Singapore is very proud to have Mr. S. Dhanabalan (ex-Chairman, Temasek Holdings; ex-Cabinet Minister) as our patron. Mr. Dhanabalan is an active Habitat volunteer who participates in Habitat builds and events throughout the year. He continues to be a great source of inspiration and wisdom for many Habitat staff and volunteers.
Our Senior Advisor
Mr. Philip Ng
Habitat for Humanity Singapore is blessed to have Mr. Philip Ng on board as our Senior Advisor. Philip has been supporting Habitat's events, and encourages many others to work alongside us to fight poverty in Singapore and in this region.
Mr. Philip Ng
Our Board of Directors
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