The Site Hostess with the Mostest

Perched 3,891 feet above sea level, atop the Alleghany county of North Carolina, the beautiful summit of Betsy Peak sits strong and sturdy, watching over the southern slopes below.

Perched just a few feet above the construction site soil, transplanted from the Appalachia, another Betsy Peak stands pretty and poised, presiding over lunch at Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity’s WomenBuild. Accessorized in big black shades and an even bigger black umbrella, she resembles a spunky, southern Mary Poppins.

As site host on Habitat sites, Betsy typically arrives bright and early to greet and sign in the volunteers for the day. Her hospitality duties revolve around maintaining a clean site and happy volunteers, centralized by lunch prep and clean-up. Betsy wears many “hard hats” on-site as the site host, and enjoys every one of them. Whether it’s food, fashion or fun, Betsy doles out her support with maternal compassion. “She’s my mom,” WomenBuild site supervisor Tara Lumley affectionately remarks. Betsy finds it rewarding to be there for everyone. “After they’ve worked, they deserve to have a relaxing time and to have a really nice break. I try and make it a really nice experience for them while I’m here,” she says.

Betsy joins a slew of senior citizens that are choosing to devote their later years in life to humanitarian efforts. Betsy first sought Habitat for Humanity after attending a course at the University of St. Thomas titled “Challenges in the Third Chapter of Life: Finding Balance and Renewed Meaning.” Says Betsy: “I wrote all these things down to try and decide [what I wanted to do]. I knew it had to have passion, had to have something that was helping other people…and had to be something also that made me feel really good.” After pinpointing her priorities she realized that Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity would be a great fit.

She first volunteered in a constructional capacity during last year’s Women Build, but a broken toe led her to seek non-construction volunteer positions on-site this year. For the sassy, yet sweet Kentuckian, the site host duties fit her like a white southern glove. “My best skills are social. It’s in my DNA!” she says with her sweet southern twang.

Betsy loves the diverse age range of volunteers she sees on-site and feels the experience enriches each volunteer’s perspective on life. “I like different people. I don’t believe in staying in your own age bracket. I learn from you, and you learn from me. You will experience things that I will never experience, and yet you will not experience some of the things that I went through,” she says, referring to the professional and personal struggles women like her have faced.

Because of this historical background, Betsy likes bringing her granddaughter Maddie to WomenBuild to visit with the volunteers and to show her the vast opportunities available to women today. Betsy points out: “When I was growing up, women couldn’t do this. I mean, they weren’t allowed to do it, or if they did they ran into all kinds of problems. I want [Maddie] to know, just as I did with my daughter, that she can do anything she that wants to do.”

Outside of Twin Cities Habitat, Betsy utilizes her savvy social skills as an independent contractor for the city Minneapolis, coordinating relocation tours and meetings. Betsy has lived in Minnesota on and off for over 33 years.

This fall she’ll bring her public speaking skills to Twin Cities Habitat as she takes on yet another role for the organization: ambassador. As a Habitat Ambassador, Betsy will speak at various social engagements, educating the public about affordable housing and dispelling myths commonly held about Habitat for Humanity. Betsy asserts: “I love it here. I’m a great ambassador for Minneapolis. I can sell this place. And now I’m going to sell Habitat. I know I can sell it! I can’t wait.”

The feeling is mutual, as Twin Cities Habitat eagerly waits to be heard through by the formidable, yet friendly voice of Betsy Peak.

Contributed by Rachel Anderson