The Team

Hi, I'm Lynn! Like you, I'm looking forward to our serving adventure and privilege to contribute to a worthy cause. This middle child (3 of 4) was born, bread, and brain-washed in a suburb outside Chicago.

I have many interests (reading, gardening, photography, technology, most sports, travel, adventure, etc.) and thrive on academic and career growth. Yes, a walking conflict! However, this blessing has built the foundation for a career in Workforce Learning and Development (helping companies develop people or process to drive profit).

Here are 3 fast facts; I worked for an oil company in West Africa, teach fitness PT - special populations, and skated with the Chicago Blackhawks for charity (note – only 2 of the 3 are true… guesses?)

I was born and raised in New Jersey, spending all my summers at the Jersey Shore, either in Long Branch or Monmouth Beach. I have been employed by Allstate Insurance Company for 28 years and I work as an investigator in the Special Investigation Unit. I enjoy to travel and have been to Italy, England, Ireland and recently to Mexico, ( Cabos ).

I am married and we have one son, Kenny, who will also be volunteering for the 2015 South Africa build. This is our first Global Village trip and we are very excited to be part of the team.

Hey y'all! My name is Trevor Morris, I am a 22 year old college student currently attending the University of California Santa Barbara. I am graduating in June with a degree in Biopsychology and will be moving up to Redwood City for work. I love the outdoors and one of my favorite things to do is go backpacking. Throughout my life I have not had the opportunity to travel much past the US and Canada and I figure this is the perfect opportunity to get out and experience another culture while giving back to those who are less fortunate. Looking forward to meeting and having a wonderful time with all of you!

I used to be a professional singer/dancer throughout my teens and late twenties. While attending college and performing, I was also working with children (teaching dance and as a teacher's assistant in LAUSD). I realized that my true talent was teaching children. I worked as a pre-school teacher as well as teaching dance. Now I'm a director and a co-owner of My Gym Children's Fitness Center in Los Angeles. I teach gymnastics, dance and karate to children from 6 months-teenagers. I volunteered with many organization such as Schools On Wheels, Head Start programs and now Monday Night Mission. I've always wanted to volunteer in Africa. I'm excited and honored to be apart of this group.

Hey team! I'm Betsy and can't tell you how excited I am to be a part of this trip. After growing up in Philadelphia and Houston, I now live in Brooklyn and work in the music industry in New York City. As a proud Penn State nittany lion, I also spent some time in Manchester, UK, during college which so far has been the greatest time of my life. This will be my first time south of the equator and my first time in Africa as well. I've wanted to join a Habitat build for years and years and am thrilled to finally be doing it! (It’s about time I put all those hours spent watching HGTV to good use, right?) In my free time, I enjoy going to even more concerts, listening to music, yoga, snuggling my cat Pearl, writing, Broadway, putzing around with the latest digital trend, and a good glass of wine. Looking forward to meeting everyone in Cape Town!

Hey! My name is Kendall Bell, I was born in Chicago, IL and I currently live in North Carolina. My most memorable travel experiences include my exchange trip to Argentina and trip to Hawai’i. I’m a rising freshman at Duke University and while I had some service experience in high school volunteering, I’m very much looking forward to this Global Village trip and using it to set my bar for service higher in the future. This is also my 1^st Global Village trip and 1^st trip to the continent (not country) of Africa. I’ve volunteered in the back room of a Habitat store, but this will be my first build. I can’t wait to see South Africa, and most importantly build much needed shelter for families.

KEITH BELL

I am from Long Island, NY and currently live in North Carolina. I have lived in 8 US cities during the course of a 30 year corporate career primarily focused in the wholesale and retail end of selling gasoline and diesel fuel. I am married with 2 children, one of whom is on the Global Village Trip with me. I am ecstatic that we are doing this trip together.

This is my 1^st Global Village trip and 1^st trip to the continent of Africa. I have worked on 2 US Habitat builds in the US and a build with another organization.

I am excited about joining the build and this team in helping a family gain a home. I am also looking forward to seeing the wonderful country of South Africa.

Hello! My name is Tiffany Padilla, I am 25 years old and currently serving active duty in the USAF. I am originally from Santa Maria, CA but I am currently stationed in Tokyo, Japan. I have also been stationed in Texas and Honduras. I travel a lot due to my career but I also love to travel on my own. I recently realized I can do the tourist thing in just about any country and its going to feel the same. I wanted to not only travel somewhere new but to also give back and truly learn about the country and their culture. I hope to make some great friends during this trip and I am really excited to help out!

Hi My name is Nabila Rahman. I just turned twenty-four years old in the beginning of April. I am from New York City. I graduated from St. John’s University with a degree in computer science. I work for Standard & Poor’s Capital IQ as a business systems analyst. I love to travel, read books, spend quality time with my friends and family and my cat. My first trip with the Global Village program was in April of 2014 in Phuket, Thailand. I can honestly say it was the best trip of my life. It was the most amazing and rewarding experience. Not only did I get to help a family have a new home, I also had the opportunity to make great friends and explore a beautiful country like Thailand.

I am very excited for this Nelson Mandela build in South Africa and can’t wait to meet everyone on this trip!

IRWIN ARIEFF

I'm a longtime and mostly retired writer, editor and journalist who covered a broad range of subjects including the United Nations, international diplomacy, U.S. politics, the White House, French politics and lifestyles, science and medicine and cooking and restaurants.

Before leaving daily journalism in 2007, I was a Reuters correspondent for 23 years, serving in senior posts in Washington, Paris and New York as well as at the United Nations. I later edited two books on world affairs for the United Nations Association-USA and was a regular contributor to the association’s online publications before its demise in 2011.

Most of my writing these days appears on Passblue.com, a private non-profit website serving the United Nations community and affiliated with the City University of New York’s Ralph Bunche Institute for International Studies. Among other things, I write a regular column for the site called UN EATS, which reviews restaurants in the U.N. neighborhood. I previously wrote restaurant reviews for The Washington Post and Washington City Paper in the 1980s and 1990s with my wife, Deborah Baldwin, now an editor with This Old House magazine. Deborah and I have a daughter, Alexis, 34, who lives in Washington, works for the Congressional Research Service as an Africa analyst, and is perfect in every way.

ANN COOPER & LARRY HEINZERLING