Volunteer Eileen Yelverton

I am excited to be a member on this Kyrgyzstan trip! This will be my second Global Village build with Roger, the first being Nepal in 2009. I live in Lyons, CO with my best friend and husband Forrest who is also on this trip. I've worked as a geologist, carpenter, cabinet maker and a "non-working" mom (my best job yet). Currently I am back to homesteading, puttering and wandering, volunteering, reading, traveling, enjoying friends and family, and trying to spend as much time outdoors as possible. (I still dream of having chickens!) With Roger as our fearless leader, I have no doubt we will be a great team!

Volunteers Robyn Johnson & Zach Krapfl

Hello all, I’m Robyn. I live in Colorado where I work as a counselor, ride my bike, and used to take care of chickens. My husband Zach and I are in the midst of building our own home, so we thought it would be fun to take a break by building a house for someone else far, far away. This will be my first Habitat Global Village trip. I’ve wanted to go on one for a while, but have let work or dog duty get in the way. So silly. Be forewarned that Roger is my beloved if somewhat ornery father-in-law, therefore an added incentive for attending is to observe him in his element as well as score brownie points for life. While I’ve never been even remotely close to Kyrgyzstan, I’ve done a share of overseas travel and volunteering. I especially like that this trip has us staying with host families and know it will add to what we give and take away from this adventure. See you all in Kyrgyzstan!

I’m Zach, Robyn and I live in Paonia Colorado where I design electric bike and renewable residential energy systems. We’ll be incorporating a lot of my design ideas in a house we’re building in Paonia.

I can't wait to visit Kyrgyzstan, meet the people and return for my 2nd Habitat build (Nepal was my first) with many other returning friends as well as what already looks to be a great crew!

 

Volunteer Yvette Marie Meftah

I've worked in public service my entire career, and Habitat is a wonderful extension of that -  it also provides a more direct and immediate way of helping someone than working in government usually does.  My parents immigrated to the States from Ireland and Iran, so they made international travel a priority when I was growing up, showing us other countries and teaching us to appreciate and respect the differences in cultures - their world view and strong commitment to helping others has always inspired me to see and experience more.  I just finished a H4H project in Mozambique in March and am looking forward to our group's trip in September.   

Volunteer Tania Pirozzi

I’ve been in Brooklyn since before it was cool to do so, but I guess I have my parents to blame since you can’t choose where you were born. I have travelled through south and central America, Europe (including a stint living in Milan after college), and done three Habitat trips already: Tajikistan, Sri Lanka and Vietnam. I blame my parents again for some of that, but really, most of it was me. By day, I’m the deputy photo editor at Town and Country magazine, by night, I am an avid couch surfer with exceptional knowledge of bad tv. I prefer a book over a magazine any day (don’t tell my editor friends) and I think building a house in a third world country with a bunch of strangers is super fun (don’t tell my snotty New York friends). I’m dumb enough to try anything twice, although I’ve all but given up on liking spicy foods. I’m allergic to cats, but I prefer to tell people I’m allergic to tigers becausesounds better. I’m a libra.

Volunteer Bob Peterson

I grew up on a farm in Minnesota. With Barb’s jobs, I have been able to be self-employed most of my life since military service during the Vietnam War. I have been a real estate broker, estate planning attorney - at the same time offering financial planning and tax service. I then became the Director of Gift Planning for the University of Minnesota Foundation and finally the Vice Chancellor for University of Relations at the Crookston campus of the University of Minnesota. I am now semi-retired, still providing tax service for a few clients. I am kept busy as President of PET (Personal Energy Transportation) affiliate in the Minneapolis, and Vice President of a non-profit senior housing, assisted living and memory care facility. In addition to leading HFH work camps in the US and Canada for 25 years, we have participated in several Global Village trips since retirement- El Salvador, Ecuador, Mongolia, New Zealand and Nepal. We have also visited 10 other countries since retirement for pleasure and very much enjoy meeting new people and exploring new places. I look forward to our trip to Kyrgyzstan.

Volunteer Barb Peterson

After growing up on a farm in Minnesota, I attended the University of Minnesota. Bob and I met and married there and I followed him around the world as an Air Force officer’s wife. Upon returning to Minnesota I joined 3M as a research librarian. After almost 30 years I retired from 3M and joined Ecolab as the Director of Global Knowledge Management. At the end of 2007 I retired again. Bob and I are longtime members of the United Church of Christ in New Brighton and it is an important part of our lives. Both of our children and their families, including granddaughters 7 and 9, attend and so we get to see them often. Retirement has given me time to pursue my interests in gardening and travel. I have become a Master Gardener in Wisconsin, where we live on 50+ acres. Each year we expand our gardens and orchard. Habitat for Humanity has been an important part of our lives for 25 years as I have helped Bob lead work camps to many parts of the US and Canada every year. I am really looking forward to this opportunity to be part of the team in Kyrgyzstan.

Volunteer Greg Lehmann

I have spent nearly all my 28 years living on the sunny coast of California, with the majority of it near where I currently live in Los Angeles. As much as I love LA and my day-to-day life as an engineer in the aerospace industry, I also eagerly welcome any opportunity to escape from routine and embark on a new adventure. My passions include listening to lively music, eatng delicious food, working with my hands, learning new practical skills, playing soccer and staying fit, having good conversations with interesting people, getting outdoors on weekends, and of course traveling. After dabbling in learning Spanish, I first got my feet wet travelling extensively in South and Central America before branching out to Thailand and most recently Tanzania. While I always like to seek out new and exciting places to explore, I believe the best part about traveling is not necessarily the cool sights I see but the people that I meet and how I always come out a wiser person no matter what difficulties I encounter. I first got involved with Habitat for Humanity while attending Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Soon after joining the campus chapter, I began serving as a club officer and had the pleasure of joining three Collegiate Challenge trips with fellow students during our spring break vacation. After reconnecting with Habitat this last year, I met another volunteer that turned me onto the Global Village program. As soon as I began reading about it, I knew I had to join in since it basically combines all my interests into one convenient two week trip. On my application I put Kyrgyzstan down as my first choice and so here I am. I look forward to meeting you all!

Volunteer Monica Helinski

My first foreign volunteer experience was in Bhutan as part of a medical team utilizing my special work expertise. While in Bhutan, I learned about Habitat and then had the pleasure of joining Roger on the Vietnam Habitat team in 2011. I am from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and reside in the city neighborhood of Squirrel Hill. Squirrel Hill was very creatively named in that it has lots of squirrels and lots of hills. I work as a nurse anesthetist in a large teaching hospital affiliated with the University of Pittsburgh. I enjoy my job very much, as well as, teaching. I help as needed with various workshops at the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing and precept students in the operating room.

I am an active person who enjoys working out and anything to do with the outdoors. I routinely run, hike, lift weights, and enjoy the occasional yoga class…and I always enjoy a walk with my dog Molly…who walks me most of the time.

I am very close with my family and friends and they are an intricate part of my spare time…I love a cozy dinner with good company and good convo. I seek to learn and strive to spark my curiosity through experiences and the people intertwined with those experiences…whether during any average day or through travel. One of my personal goals is to expand my vantage point from every angle possible through travel and hopefully being able to give to others while doing so. I feel I have been afforded much opportunity in my life, often made possible by wonderful mentors, teachers, and just plain generous people. I wish to give back and pay it forward.

Volunteer Margaret Downen

This is my first adventure with Habitat International and I look forward to rolling up my sleeves and getting my hands dirty. I have been actively supporting local charities by volunteering for more than twenty-five years and I love to travel. Therefore, when a friend recently told me about this global organization, I realized it presented an opportunity to intertwine my love of philanthropy with my love of travel. I also realized my wilderness survival training might come in handy and I had better make sure my CPR certification is up to date. I graduated from Cal-Poly Pomona with a BS degree in Biology and Scientific Computer Programming, but when I’m not looking for an adventure, I am a financial consultant/corporate controller. Don’t ask me how I went from Biology to Finance, all I can say is I love math. Moreover, many people can’t read a financial statement to save their lives. I was born and raised in Southern California and moved to the Pacific Northwest after college where I raised two amazing young men, the youngest (20) is attending the University of Oregon (Go Ducks!) and the oldest (23) works in Seattle having graduated from the University of Washington.