NETX Habitat Names Dr. Lisa Seeley As Volunteer Of The Month
LONGVIEW (Dec. 3, 2021) — “I’ve never been a woman you could put in a box.”
A look at the career of Dr. Lisa Seeley confirms her statement. Dr. Seeley, a board member for Northeast Texas Habitat for Humanity and Director of the Great Commission Center and Global Education at East Texas Baptist University, has over 20 years of mission mobilization expertise.
The phrase “Missio Dei” (mission of God), is one that certainly is exemplified in Dr. Seeley’s daily life. She simplifies this mission by looking at her work with Habitat as simply just one more way to serve others.
“There’s something about a Habitat build that fills you,” Dr. Seeley said. “Volunteers get truly drawn into what NETHFH does when they see how they can truly make a difference.”
Her first experience at Habitat included 20 ETBU students as they helped construct a new housing project. “I loved getting to go up on the roof,” she said. “We could see where the walls and bedrooms would be. That’s what’s special about Habitat; you get to see the product built and be a part of it.”
Building a house is much more than just construction. It is a long process that requires a plethora of moving parts. It would be next to impossible to get anything done without good leadership, which is not lost on Seeley.
“When you have leaders as we do, and you see them in the trenches with you, working hard, it motivates you to do more,” she said.
And, there is no shortage of ways to do more.
“There’s always something you can do to serve,” Seeley says. “You may not be able to swing a hammer, but you can sure make a sandwich.”
Being a part of Northeast Texas Habitat’s mission to bring quality housing to the community doesn’t just have to be volunteering on build sites.
“It can also be financial,” she said. “I haven’t been able to do as much building, but I can do more work in the background.”
This need to do more, for Seeley, stems from the demand for better housing, especially in the Marshall community.
“If you walk off (ETBU) campus, you don’t have to go far to see houses that need restoration,” she said. “Hopefully, even with such a long way to go, Marshall is starting to see the light.”
This brings hope to Seeley that more long-term investors in the community will see the impact and need for Habitat in the future.