President Jimmy Carter - Habitat for Humanity Volunteer

"When I left the White House, retired by the results of the 1980 election, I didn’t know what I was going to do next. I knew that I had a life expectancy of twenty-five more years, and I wondered how I could capitalize on the experience and knowledge of having been the leader of the greatest nation in the world. Looking to my Christian faith for a way forward, I began teaching Sunday school again at Maranatha Baptist Church — where my wife, Rosalynn, and I attend services in our hometown of Plains, Georgia.
Our religious beliefs are important to us. I have taught Sunday school since I was a teen, and we attend services regularly, but for a time that had been the extent of it. Like many people, Rosalynn and I have searched to find an outlet to put that faith into action. Rarely have we found the opportunity to follow Jesus Christ’s example of reaching out to those who are poor and in need and treating them as equals.
The underlying problem is that sometimes it is difficult for people like us — who have homes, good educations, and fruitful careers — to cross the chasm that separates us from people who may have none of these blessings. Often, the needy are scorned by us more affluent people who think to ourselves, Well, if those poor people would only work as hard as I do or study as hard as I do, then they could provide a good home for their families, just as I do. That kind of prejudice can be difficult to overcome."  — President Jimmy Carter