Volunteer Contact: Volunteer Desk (650)568-7342 volunteer@peninsula habitat.org More Profiles Home Volunteer Profiles David Cropper Board Chair Board Member Continues Legacy of Love That Began in His Childhood The construction site buzzed with activity. Through the sea of hard hats, you could see teams of volunteers painting wood, hammering nails and raising walls. They worked quickly and efficiently. It was a race against time. Part of Peninsula Habitat for Humanity's annual accelerated build event called "Raise the Roofs," the volunteers only had four days to finish as much construction as possible on five houses. David Cropper, member and former Chairman of the Board of Directors of Peninsula Habitat, was among those framing and raising walls during the event. "I wish I could volunteer at Habitat's construction sites all the time," he said. "It was exhilarating and exhausting work, but I felt so good at the end of the day." A real estate developer by day, Cropper is no stranger to building houses. While growing up his family traveled with their church to build homes for needy families in Mexico. The value of helping others stuck, so he got involved with a Habitat affiliate in college and helped to build a home in Los Angeles. Now, with a family of his own, he travels with them to build houses in Juarez, Mexico. He also loves doing construction work around his own home, and is a regular volunteer with Peninsula Habitat for Humanity. "As a real estate developer, I'm aware of the great need for affordable housing on the Peninsula," he said. "It made sense to take my skills and connections, and use them to help Habitat. I also like all the people I work with - staff, homeowners and volunteers - they're a joy to be around." David started volunteering with Peninsula Habitat in 2002 after being invited to help with a special project designed to get the real estate and development communities more involved with the affiliate. "At the end of the project, I wanted to do more," he said. "Habitat was looking to increase the local real estate community's participation. When they presented me with an opportunity to join the board, I couldn't pass it up." Cropper has held a number of key roles on Peninsula Habitat's Board of Directors, including Vice Chair and Board Chair, for which his responsibilities included making policy and governance decisions, providing financial support, making introductions to potential donors and volunteers, and handling other fiduciary duties. Additionally, David participates in fundraising, donor and volunteer appreciation events, project groundbreakings and home dedication ceremonies. He admits his most memorable Habitat moment occurred as he watched seven families from Daly City receive the keys to their very first homes. "I'll never forget standing behind a family at Habitat Way listening to the daughter talk about what it meant for her parents to have a home," David said. "It was overwhelming. I kept thinking how lucky I was to be sharing such a special moment with those families." Now that Cropper has a family of his own, he's encouraging his children to build homes as well. "My family is very blessed," he said. "I want to show them how to serve their community. I hope they'll help carry on the tradition of loving others by continuing to build homes for families in need."