Habitat, Thrivent form $100 million alliance: Hundreds of homes and an advocacy center

In a four-year financial and volunteer alliance to increase affordable housing, Habitat for Humanity International and Thrivent Financial for Lutherans have announced a $100 million agreement that includes $5 million to help rebuild homes in the Gulf Coast area.

Thrivent Financial, a nonprofit insurance agency based in Minneapolis, will fund 70 percent of each “Thrivent Builds” home it sponsors, according to a September 8 news release. Officials called the national alliance unique in that Habitat has 1,699 local affiliates and Thrivent has 1,362 volunteer chapters.

The homebuilding initiative, which also includes plans for 200 homes overseas and a mobile advocacy center addressing substandard housing, envisions building up to 500 Habitat homes annually by 2008 and engaging thousands of volunteers.