March 9, 2011; Source: 10News.com |  Update 6-1-11: On April 21st, the SDHFH Board of Directors agreed to repeal the policy that charged volunteers $100 a head to participate in its building projects.

We missed this story when it was published three weeks ago but thought it was an interesting spin. In San Diego, Habitat for Humanity is charging volunteers $100 a head to participate in its building projects. In this article the responses from the volunteers are way less than enthusiastic.

Patricia and Morgan Gallo, a mother and daughter who worked with a group of mothers and daughters called SPRITES say that they will never again volunteer with Habitat and the volunteer who was charged with coordinating corporate volunteers is said to have “quit in disgust” at the new policy.

The group’s officer of development, Chris Marek, however, thinks the strategy holds water as a revenue producer and points to the fact that many charity walks and runs charge participants. “We have to be creative to find ways to increase funding,” he says. The organization launched the strategy in January.

Thanks to the ARNOVA list serv for pointing us to this story.—Ruth McCambridge