When Angela Sella thinks back on the many Milwaukee Habitat for Humanity builds she has participated in over the past 20 years, there’s one that sticks out.
“It was probably one of the hardest builds I’ve ever worked on, because we were framing – and you actually build and lift the walls. It was a really hot day in August, and the homeowner was there that day, lifting their walls with us,” Sella recalls, tearing up.
Seeing that homeowner put in the hard work toward building a better life for themselves and their family is why Sella has continued to find fulfillment in her work with the nonprofit.
Sella, lead information governance analyst at Milwaukee-based mortgage insurance provider MGIC, first got involved with Habitat in 2003, when she went out on her first build with MGIC.
“They had coworkers going out for a full day’s worth of work. I remember that it was an 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. shift, because I was really exhausted by the end of it. But, I went out there, and I kind of got the bug,” she said.
Today, Sella sits on a committee at MGIC that helps organize and recruit coworkers for the eight Habitat for Humanity builds the company participates in every year.
“At MGIC, we are a business-to-business organization. It is our mission to get people into homes, but we don’t work directly with homeowners. By being engaged with Habitat, you get a chance to provide that personal touch,” she said. “I believed that other coworkers would want to have that same impact, and I think that’s proven to be true because the program has really expanded. MGIC isn’t a huge company, so to even support eight builds is a lot.”
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Sella drills drywall during a recent Women Build event. (Submitted photo)[/caption]
One of the ways Sella has helped to increase the number of MGIC workers involved in Habitat builds is by using her skill for analysis. She found that when an executive volunteered for, or sponsored, a build, more rank-and-file workers participated. She used the data to encourage more executives to sponsor builds.
“Coworkers love to get a chance to work with executives outside of the office – to meet with them and talk with them,” Sella said.
For Annette Adams, MGIC’s chief human resources officer, it is often Sella’s devotion that coworkers mention when they talk about their reason for supporting Habitat.
“She embodies the notion that giving back is important, but bringing others along, and giving back together, goes that much further,” Adams said.
Beth Van Gorp, Milwaukee Habitat for Humanity’s director of volunteering and advocacy, noted how Sella is always strategizing ways to get more people involved.
“Angela is that wonderful volunteer whose own efforts are multiplied by a combination of caring and enthusiastic recruiting,” Van Gorp said.
Sella has also helped to raise money and build homes for Habitat through her work with Women Build, in which a group of women spend a day working on a build site.
“This is the third year that I will be on a team,” Sella said. “I made a point to grab some friends who have never been out because who knows? They might get the bug.”
Sella knows first-hand just how much of an impact homeownership can have on a family.
“I came from a low-income family, but the one thing we had was a house of our own. And that stability afforded me a lot of opportunities … that kind of stability can be lifechanging,” she said.
