The gift of home:
The legacy of
Ellen Hill
Ellen Hill always brought her own tools to the build site. She was always equipped to take on the task at hand. And she was determined to bring others along with her.
Ellen was a committed volunteer and supporter of Habitat East Bay/Silicon Valley. Before her passing in 2021, the former teacher spent more than two decades helping families build safe and affordable homes.
“She was this dynamic powerhouse of a person,” says Lisa Amor, Habitat East Bay/Silicon Valley’s development and planned gift officer. “She was the first to raise her hand to volunteer for anything and everything.”
A legacy of giving
An active community member, Ellen also donated her time and talents as a tutor at the library and volunteering at a local food bank. She was very involved in her church. She could just as easily be found painting a wall inside a Habitat home as she could painting lines in her church parking lot or organizing a school supply drive. The retiree learned the importance of serving others from her father, and she carried his community-minded values with her throughout her life, Lisa says.
Today, Ellen’s legacy of giving lives on through the impact of the generous donation of her two-bedroom home in San Jose, California, which she bequeathed to Habitat East Bay/Silicon Valley in her will. The US$1.4 million in proceeds from the sale helped the affiliate broaden their impact in the local community, including helping to fund their 42-home Walnut Creek development.
“For donors like Ellen to donate their most valuable asset to Habitat, it provides such an enormous support. Gifts like that help affiliates to serve more families so they can build safe and affordable places to live,” Lisa says. “The amount of the sale was not something Ellen would have been able to donate in her lifetime, if it was just a cash donation. These types of gifts are truly transformational for a Habitat affiliate and the families we serve.”
“These types of gifts are truly transformational for a Habitat affiliate and the families we serve.”
Lisa Amor,
Habitat East Bay/Silicon Valley
Tools for change
It’s fitting that a woman like Ellen left her own home to Habitat. It’s also fitting that she left her tool collection. Today her drills, ladders, saws and gardening tools are used by volunteers and future homeowners building in her hometown of San Jose.
Real estate gifts like Ellen’s have helped make a lasting difference in the lives of families across the U.S. Whether a Habitat affiliate sells a donated parcel of land to fund home repairs, gives a donated home a few updates to prepare it for new homeowners, or a family is able to build a new Habitat home from the proceeds of a sale of a home like Ellen’s – it all helps to build a better world where everyone has a decent place to live.
Tools for change
It’s fitting that a woman like Ellen left her own home to Habitat. It’s also fitting that she left her tool collection. Today her drills, ladders, saws and gardening tools are used by volunteers and future homeowners building in her hometown of San Jose.
Real estate gifts like Ellen’s have helped make a lasting difference in the lives of families across the U.S. Whether a Habitat affiliate sells a donated parcel of land to fund home repairs, gives a donated home a few updates to prepare it for new homeowners, or a family is able to build a new Habitat home from the proceeds of a sale of a home like Ellen’s – it all helps to build a better world where everyone has a decent place to live.
To learn about how you can leave real estate to Habitat in your will and help more families in need of affordable places to call home, contact your local Habitat affiliate or visit our website.
Built with Shorthand-
This issue highlights how we’re helping to shape affordable housing policies in the U.S.; our sustainable housing solutions; the lasting legacy of a devoted supporter who gifted her home to Habitat; and more.
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Habitat Magazine illustrates the mission at the center of all our work – ensuring people in our communities and around the world can achieve the safety and stability of affordable homeownership. Journey through the impact of Habitat with our collection of Habitat Magazine issues.
