The key to unlocking Board Chair Pete Barr Jr.’s all-in support of Habitat Orlando & Osceola mission was the handing off of a literal key.
Watching a Habitat homeowner receive the keys to their brand new, affordable Habitat home after their closing sealed the deal.
“I went to my first home dedication, and that was it. I could see the effect on the families, and I could see that it was a hand up and not a handout, and it was just a tremendous organization,” Barr said. “It’s very powerful and moving, and that’s how it affected me. That’s how I decided, ‘For sure, yeah.’”
That light-bulb moment was more than eight years ago. After that, Barr, the president & CEO of digital marketing agency &Barr, joined our Board of Directors, two years later taking the helm as chair. This January, he’ll hand the gavel over to Robert Stuart Jr. as his tenure as chair comes to an end.
Under Barr’s leadership, Habitat Orlando & Osceola weathered the pandemic, received a transformational $5.75 million grant from the McKenzie Scott Foundation, launched its Face The Housing Crisis Campaign, and revolutionized the way it serves the Central Florida community. Under his guidance as chair, Habitat Orlando & Osceola launched a roof replacement program, opened its Habitat U classes to the public, became HUD-certified for housing counseling and first-time homebuyer workshops, and launched free one-on-one financial counseling through the Orange County Financial Empowerment Center in partnership with Orange County.
“Homeownership and having a safe home and a roof over your head that you own can help the entire family with everything from education and health to security. Having an asset that you can pass on to your family completely changes the family, and not just the person that owns the house, it’s everyone that lives with them.”
Barr, a husband, father and grandfather, said he’s motivated by the data showing that children perform better in school when they have a stable place to study and can plant roots in their school and neighborhood.
“When they are in their own home, everything changes, not just the fact they’re homeowners, but their whole life changes. They’re in a stable environment, and that produces wonderful children and great grown-ups,” Barr said.
Barr said his advice to anyone interested in getting involved with Habitat other than attending a home dedication, is to get their hands dirty on the build site. He said that’s where the mission comes to life, as future Habitat homebuyers and volunteers come together to not only help build a home, but to connect and share stories.
“Until you experience what it is, it’s hard to understand the impact of Habitat,” he said.
Barr said it’s been a pleasure working alongside Habitat Orlando & Osceola President & CEO Catherine Steck McManus and her entire team. When they saw the urgency of swelling housing crisis, he said it was powerful to watch the team leap into action.
“It’s easy to be apathetic, to give up and to just like hope it works out itself. It won’t work itself out. Someone’s going to have to step up and take the lead,” Barr said. “And Catherine and her team have done that, and very proud of that.”