On a cold, rainy, morning volunteer Lynn Merrill recalls asking her husband, “Why do I do this?” before heading out to a build site.
She had been volunteering with Habitat for a few years and was an unofficial spokesperson of the mission at that point. There were plenty of other ways she could be contributing that didn’t require being cold and wet on a Saturday morning.
Alan, her husband, assured Lynn that her mind would change by the end of the day. This is what always happens, he was sure she would come home and say, “I had such a great day!”
And she did.
Of course, she did. Habitat has had a special place in her heart since she was introduced in 1988.
That year Lynn’s senior pastor approached her and said, “You’re going to make a motion for $100,000 to be given to Habitat International to build 20 houses with Jimmy Carter.”
This was an ambitious ask as Peachtree Presbyterian Church had never done an all-church project, and this was a big one.
As the chair of the Community Concerns Committee, Lynn made the request, and it was approved. With that donation, Habitat International could buy the land that the 20 homes would be built on.
“I chaired the volunteers and we just had lots of folks come forward that say, ‘I want to be a part of this,’” Lynn recalled.
President Carter was there on dedication day as a way of announcing to the larger community that the Carter Project would take place there that summer.
He arrived in a formal suit and work boots to “walk the property and the visit the land that he would be working that summer.”
While the whole process was a rewarding experience for Lynn, it was the relationship with her first homeowner, Evelyn, that let Lynn know she had found her calling.
“I was her homeowner partner. So we went through the building process together and I would have to say 35 years later, she was one of my most treasured friends.”
So, when Lynn came home and told Alan that she had a great day, he was less than surprised.
But this time she kept going, “I said, I’ve had such a great day. I want to quit my job and volunteer for Habitat full time, because it is very clear to me if I can give my effort, we can grow from 25 to 50 houses in a year.”
With a master’s degree in public administration, Lynn was certain that she could make the change that we needed at the time.
Naturally, Alan was concerned about the big life change but was ultimately very supportive. It was clear that this was Lynn’s calling.
“Sometimes something gets in your heart, and you just know what’s right,” Lynn said. “It was the right thing for me and for our family.”
Lynn served as the vice chair of the board and then was chair of the board during the Olympics.
Throughout her time on the Atlanta Habitat board, Lynn has been a part of some of our highest profile builds and ambitious projects.
When it was announced that Atlanta would host the Olympics, Millard Fuller — Habitat for Humanity Co-founder — was eager to make an important contribution to the Centennial Games.
It was proposed that we build 100 homes during the Olympics. The board deliberated then decided to build 100 homes over two years within sight of an Olympic venue.
The board’s addition to the build plan allowed Habitat to explore new neighborhoods and help new families.
As she goes back to that time, Lynn recalls the rush of those two years.
She remembers high profile people and athletes attending dedications because of how close they were to the venues.
She remembers all the money that needed to be raised to build all the homes. Lynn got good at telling Habitat’s story and found that people were excited to participate in what was happening.
She remembers how it changed her life.
“Once the Olympics were over, my whole life changed. I became a fundraiser as a professional. I had an opportunity to join an organization that also had affordable housing and to tell their story,” Lynn said. “I didn’t know that was my calling, but it turned out to be.”
Lynn made true on her promise from that cold rainy day, and helped the organization grow from those 25 homes a year to 50.
