Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Work Project
Encyclopedia
The Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Work Project - formerly the Jimmy Carter Work Project (JCWP) - is an annual home building blitz for Habitat for Humanity that generally alternates between a project in the United States
one year, and an international location the next. The first JCWP took place in Brooklyn, NY in September, 1984. That first event involved work on a 19-unit apartment complex, and returned the next year to complete the project. In 2009, the Carter Work Project had grown to 166 houses in southest Asia. The project attracts thousands of volunteers, including celebrities, prisoners, and ordinary people to engage in building homes for low-income families around the world.
The 1988 Carter Work Project was notable in that it involved two separate locations - a 200 volunteer, 10 unit renovation project in North Philadelphia, PA, and a 1000 volunteer, 20 house project in Atlanta, GA. In 1989, the JCWP involved over 100 0 volunteers in Milwaukee, WI completing 6 homes, and renovating 8 others. The broader House-Raising Week in 1989 involved the startup, completion, or rehab of 500 homes.
. Around 2000 volunteers raised 100 homes in Tijuana, and 7 others in San Diego. The 1991 JCWP involved 400 volunteers building 14 houses and a day-care center in Miami, Florida
. In 1992, the Carter Work Project involved 1000 volunteers building 10 houses - including one built comp letely by women - in Washington, DC, and the rehabilitation of another 10 row houses in nearby Baltimore, MD.
The first completely international Jimmy Carter Work Project took place in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and Waterloo, Ontario
in Canada. At the 1993 JCWP, 1100 volunteers built 18 houses in Winnipeg, and 10 in Waterloo. The 1994 JCWP built 30 houses on the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation
in Eagle Butte, SD. In 1995, the JCWP employed 1500 volunteers to build 21 houses in the Watts/Willowbrook community of Los Angeles
. This was accompanied by an accelerated build at five other southern California affiliates.
1996 saw the first Jimmy Carter Work Project to take place outside North America. In 1996, 500 volunteers from 23 countries built 10 houses in Vac, Hungary. The 14th annual Jimmy Carter Work Project, "Hammering in the Hills", brought volunteers to the Appalachia
region of eastern Kentucky and Tennessee. The 1997 JCWP built over 50 houses for seven affiliates throughout the region, with 24 other affiliates boosting their summertime building by a total of 40 additional homes, with a partnership with the Federation of Appalachian Housing Enterprises providing an additional 60 houses that summer.
100 houses were built from the ground-up during the weeklong 1998 JCWP in Houston, Texas
. A total of 6000 volunteers participated in the 1998 Carter Work Project, including 25 local prison inmates, six of whom were hired by the local HFH affiliate after the completion of their sentences. The next Jimmy Carter Work Project brought 14,000 volunteers to the Philippines
to build 293 houses in March 1999. This was the first JCWP to take place in Asia.
, where 9000 volunteers - including South Korean President Kim Dae-Jung - built 136 houses.
For the first time in 2002, the Jimmy Carter Work Project was held outside the United States for two consecutive years. The 2002 JCWP brought volunteers to Durban, South Africa to build 100 houses. 2003 brought the Work Project back to the United States, this time to build 92 houses in Alabama and Georgia. In 2004, the Carter Work Project brought volunteers to Puebla
and Veracruz, Mexico
to build 150 houses. In 2005, the Carter Work Project was held in Detroit
and Benton Harbor, Michigan
, and Windsor, Ontario
. The 2005 JCWP was documented by the DIY Network
in the series Habitat Homes: Jimmy Carter Work Project, which showcased both new homeowners and the volunteers at the 2005 Carter Work Project.
The 2006 Carter Work Project engaged over 2000 volunteers to build 100 houses in Lonavala, Maharastra, and Malavli, India. In 2007, the JCWP built 30 houses and refurbished dozens more in South Central Los Angeles - a city with more families living in poverty than any in America - and San Pedro, California.
In 2008, the project was rechristened the Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Work Project, and brought volunteers to the Hurricane Katrina
ravaged Mississippi
gulf coast. 2009 brought the JRCWP to the Mekong region of southeast Asia, where volunteer built 166 homes in Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and earthquake damaged Sichuan, China. 2010 brought the Carter Work Project with over 1000 volunteers back to Washington, DC and Baltimore, MD along with sites in Birmingham, Alabama
, Annapolis, Maryland
, and the Twin Cities
of Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota. The 2010 project emphasized the rehabilitation of forclosed properties.
, a country ravaged by a 7.0 magnitude earthquake
on 12 January 2010.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
one year, and an international location the next. The first JCWP took place in Brooklyn, NY in September, 1984. That first event involved work on a 19-unit apartment complex, and returned the next year to complete the project. In 2009, the Carter Work Project had grown to 166 houses in southest Asia. The project attracts thousands of volunteers, including celebrities, prisoners, and ordinary people to engage in building homes for low-income families around the world.
Early years
The early JCWP were all located in the United States, and were relatively small in comparison to recent years. The first two work projects took place in Brooklyn, NY in September 1984 and July, 1985, and involved "dozens" of volunteers. In 1986, 150 volunteers built a four-unit townhouse during the one-week JCWP. The 1987 JCWP was held in Charlotte, NC, where around 200 volunteers worked on 12 houses. This was done in conjunction with the world-wide House Raising Week '87, where over 250 homes were started or under construction.The 1988 Carter Work Project was notable in that it involved two separate locations - a 200 volunteer, 10 unit renovation project in North Philadelphia, PA, and a 1000 volunteer, 20 house project in Atlanta, GA. In 1989, the JCWP involved over 100 0 volunteers in Milwaukee, WI completing 6 homes, and renovating 8 others. The broader House-Raising Week in 1989 involved the startup, completion, or rehab of 500 homes.
1990s
The 1990 Jimmy Carter Work Project was both the first to include homes built outside the United States, and also the first to span a border, taking place in Tijuana, Mexico, and San Diego, CaliforniaSan Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
. Around 2000 volunteers raised 100 homes in Tijuana, and 7 others in San Diego. The 1991 JCWP involved 400 volunteers building 14 houses and a day-care center in Miami, Florida
Miami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
. In 1992, the Carter Work Project involved 1000 volunteers building 10 houses - including one built comp letely by women - in Washington, DC, and the rehabilitation of another 10 row houses in nearby Baltimore, MD.
The first completely international Jimmy Carter Work Project took place in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and Waterloo, Ontario
Waterloo, Ontario
Waterloo is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It is the smallest of the three cities in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, and is adjacent to the city of Kitchener....
in Canada. At the 1993 JCWP, 1100 volunteers built 18 houses in Winnipeg, and 10 in Waterloo. The 1994 JCWP built 30 houses on the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation
Cheyenne River Indian Reservation
The Cheyenne River Indian Reservation was created by the United States in 1889 by breaking up the Great Sioux Reservation, following its victory over the Lakota in a series of wars in the 1870s. The reservation covers almost all of Dewey and Ziebach counties in South Dakota...
in Eagle Butte, SD. In 1995, the JCWP employed 1500 volunteers to build 21 houses in the Watts/Willowbrook community of Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. This was accompanied by an accelerated build at five other southern California affiliates.
1996 saw the first Jimmy Carter Work Project to take place outside North America. In 1996, 500 volunteers from 23 countries built 10 houses in Vac, Hungary. The 14th annual Jimmy Carter Work Project, "Hammering in the Hills", brought volunteers to the Appalachia
Appalachia
Appalachia is a term used to describe a cultural region in the eastern United States that stretches from the Southern Tier of New York state to northern Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia. While the Appalachian Mountains stretch from Belle Isle in Canada to Cheaha Mountain in the U.S...
region of eastern Kentucky and Tennessee. The 1997 JCWP built over 50 houses for seven affiliates throughout the region, with 24 other affiliates boosting their summertime building by a total of 40 additional homes, with a partnership with the Federation of Appalachian Housing Enterprises providing an additional 60 houses that summer.
100 houses were built from the ground-up during the weeklong 1998 JCWP in Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
. A total of 6000 volunteers participated in the 1998 Carter Work Project, including 25 local prison inmates, six of whom were hired by the local HFH affiliate after the completion of their sentences. The next Jimmy Carter Work Project brought 14,000 volunteers to the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
to build 293 houses in March 1999. This was the first JCWP to take place in Asia.
Later years
2000 brought the Carter Work Project back to New York for the first time since the original Work Projects in 1984 and '85, along with projects in Florida and Georgia. The 2000 JCWP built 22 houses in New York, 35 in Georgia, and 100 in Florida. Habitat's 100,000th house dedication took place at the New York JCWP on September 11, 2000. 2001 brought the JCWP back to Asia, this time to KoreaSouth Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
, where 9000 volunteers - including South Korean President Kim Dae-Jung - built 136 houses.
For the first time in 2002, the Jimmy Carter Work Project was held outside the United States for two consecutive years. The 2002 JCWP brought volunteers to Durban, South Africa to build 100 houses. 2003 brought the Work Project back to the United States, this time to build 92 houses in Alabama and Georgia. In 2004, the Carter Work Project brought volunteers to Puebla
Puebla, Mexico
Puebla, Mexico, may refer to:*Puebla, one of the 32 component federal entities of the United Mexican States*Puebla, Puebla, capital city of that state...
and Veracruz, Mexico
Veracruz, Mexico
Veracruz, Mexico, may refer to:*The state of Veracruz, one of the 32 component federal entities of the United Mexican States*Veracruz, Veracruz, a major seaport and largest city in that state...
to build 150 houses. In 2005, the Carter Work Project was held in Detroit
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
and Benton Harbor, Michigan
Benton Harbor, Michigan
Benton Harbor is a city in Berrien County in the U.S. state of Michigan which is located west of Kalamazoo. The population was 10,038 at the 2010 census. It is the lesser populated of the two principal cities included in the Niles-Benton Harbor, Michigan Metropolitan Statistical Area, which has a...
, and Windsor, Ontario
Windsor, Ontario
Windsor is the southernmost city in Canada and is located in Southwestern Ontario at the western end of the heavily populated Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. It is within Essex County, Ontario, although administratively separated from the county government. Separated by the Detroit River, Windsor...
. The 2005 JCWP was documented by the DIY Network
DIY Network
DIY Network is a channel owned by Scripps Networks Interactive that focuses on do it yourself projects at home.Television stations air local versions with local hosts with segments produced by the network. Branded DIY Network programming is also broadcast in Japan and the Philippines...
in the series Habitat Homes: Jimmy Carter Work Project, which showcased both new homeowners and the volunteers at the 2005 Carter Work Project.
The 2006 Carter Work Project engaged over 2000 volunteers to build 100 houses in Lonavala, Maharastra, and Malavli, India. In 2007, the JCWP built 30 houses and refurbished dozens more in South Central Los Angeles - a city with more families living in poverty than any in America - and San Pedro, California.
In 2008, the project was rechristened the Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Work Project, and brought volunteers to the Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
ravaged Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
gulf coast. 2009 brought the JRCWP to the Mekong region of southeast Asia, where volunteer built 166 homes in Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and earthquake damaged Sichuan, China. 2010 brought the Carter Work Project with over 1000 volunteers back to Washington, DC and Baltimore, MD along with sites in Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
, Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland, as well as the county seat of Anne Arundel County. It had a population of 38,394 at the 2010 census and is situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east of Washington, D.C. Annapolis is...
, and the Twin Cities
Twin cities
Twin cities are a special case of two cities or urban centres which are founded in close geographic proximity and then grow into each other over time...
of Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota. The 2010 project emphasized the rehabilitation of forclosed properties.
Future locations
The 2011 Carter Work Project is scheduled for November 5–12 in HaitiHaiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
, a country ravaged by a 7.0 magnitude earthquake
2010 Haiti earthquake
The 2010 Haiti earthquake was a catastrophic magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake, with an epicentre near the town of Léogâne, approximately west of Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital. The earthquake occurred at 16:53 local time on Tuesday, 12 January 2010.By 24 January, at least 52 aftershocks...
on 12 January 2010.
List of locations
| Year | | Location |
|---|---|
| 1984 | Brooklyn, NY |
| 1985 | Brooklyn, NY |
| 1986 | Chicago, Il |
| 1987 | Charlotte, NC |
| 1988 | Philadelphia, PA and Atlanta, GA |
| 1989 | Milwaukee, WI |
| 1990 | Tijuana, MX and San Diego, CA |
| 1991 | Miami, FL |
| 1992 | Washington, DC and Baltimore, MD |
| 1993 | Winnipeg, MB and Waterloo, ON |
| 1994 | Eagle Butte, SD |
| 1995 | Los Angeles and southern California |
| 1996 | Vac, Hungary |
| 1997 | Tennessee and Kentucky |
| 1998 | Texas |
| 1999 | Philippines |
| 2000 | New York, Florida, and Georgia |
| 2001 | South Korea |
| 2002 | South Africa |
| 2003 | Alabama and Georgia |
| 2004 | Mexico |
| 2005 | Detroit and Benton Harbor, Michigan |
| 2006 | Lonavala, India |
| 2007 | Los Angeles |
| 2008 | Gulf Coast, Mississippi |
| 2009 | Mekong region, Thailand, China, Laos, and Cambodia |
| 2010 | Washington, DC, Baltimore and Annapolis, Maryland, Birmingham, Alabama, and Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota |
| 2011 | Léogâne, Haiti |