SAN ANTONIO — On Saturday, Habitat for Humanity will celebrate 45 years since its very first chapter was established in San Antonio. KENS 5 went to find out more about where it all began.
Patti Radle can get overwhelmed talking about Habitat For Humanity, especially thinking back on that first year.
“It took us a year to do that first home, but we learned a lot,” Radle said. “None of us knew what we were doing.”
At the corner of Chihuahua and Trinity streets, she and her husband, Rod, run the nonprofit Inner-City Development, which does work to revitalize the west-side neighborhood while responding to its emergency, educational and recreational needs.
“This is typical of what was here when we moved here 52 years ago,” Rod Radle said, gesturing to one of the many pictures of dilapidated buildings hanging up near the offices of Inner City Development.
One of their volunteers, Faith Lytle, told them about her friend Millard Fuller and his work overseas.
“He was building very simple homes in Africa for areas that were very destitute and in great need.”
Seeing the condition of the neighborhood, she had a revelation.
“And she said, 'I’m going to write him a letter, and I’m going to tell him, when he gets back to the United States, he needs to do here what he was doing in Africa.'"
Radle said many of the early organizational meetings were held right here at Inner City, and though she was a driving force, Lytle was never interested in taking credit.
“She never wanted to be like, president of the organization. She said, ‘I’ll be the secretary, I’ll write the letters, I’ll do the thank you cards,’ you know? But she really was the mover behind the scenes.”
Lytle passed away in 2005, but the organization she helped build has gone on to build more than 1,200 homes in San Antonio and Bexar County at large.
Radle said the last time she saw one of Habitat’s subdivisions in development, she had to leave early because things got too emotional.
“To see all those streets and homes after knowing the struggles at the beginning, that was amazing," she said. “Amazing to see how much they’re doing.”