This month we are celebrating 45 years of impact across the Portland region!
Together, we’ve built and repaired homes in partnership with more than 3,500 people across Multnomah, Clackamas, and Washington counties.
Here’s how it all started, according to our 1991 annual report:
In 1981, Rev. Robert McNeil founded a Habitat for Humanity support group, under the encouragement of Rev. Jack Takayanagi. He invited Millard Fuller to speak in Portland that year, and Millard’s visit inspired local volunteers to form an active affiliate chapter. In October, Audrey Sanders met with Habitat’s International Board in San Antonio, Texas, and the Portland Project was accepted as an official affiliate, the first on the West Coast and the 15th overall.
Built by community
From one home in the 1980s to hundreds of homes built and repaired in recent decades. The work has grown from individual homes to entire neighborhoods — and from new construction to helping homeowners repair and remain in the homes they already own.
Today, we are building the largest Habitat community in Oregon: 52 permanently affordable homes.
Explore the timeline below to see milestones that have shaped our story.
Timeline
1980s
1 home sold in this decade
8 people served
1990s
58 homes sold in this decade
261 people served
1995
Home Building Center opens.
Our current office remains at this location on Killingsworth Street!
2000s
167 homes sold in this decade
720 people served
2010s
295 homes sold in this decade
115 homes repaired
1,532 people served
2021
Habitat for Humanity Portland Region forms.
In January of 2021, Habitat for Humanity Portland/Metro East and Willamette West Habitat for Humanity united as one to greatly expand our impact.
