Inspire, Summer 2000

Providing the Poor Wanderer with Shelter (Isaiah 58:7) Glen Ilarriv and Mike Nelson '78 'The Bible calls us to live out our faith by reaching out to our fellow man, and in our case,'to provide the poor wanderer with shelter'(Isaiah 58:7)," shared Mike Nelson '78, vice president of Ultra Shelter International (USI). Mike works through USI to provide innovative emergency shelters to disaster victims, and he recently shared the following with Inspire: My principal partner and the founder of USI is Glen Harris, a Christian architect and builder. He began his quest to develop affordable modular shelters five years ago in response to dire and life-threatening conditions affecting homeless people. God brought us together during the devastation of Huirkane Mitch in November 1998 when we were both burdened to reach out to the thousands ofdisplaced Hondurans living in paltry conditions with no hope of recovery. Together we designed a foam-and-plastic sandwich panel structure with a foam-and aluminum roof system which we felt met the needs of the average Honduran family. We were able to donate this building, with the help ofinvestors, to a community in the hills above San Pedro Sala, which was destroyed by a midnight landslide that left only the tops of the homes exposed above ground. In January 1999, we spent two weeks in San Pedro Sulu making contacts with area believers, community leaders, and business people; viewing the area affected by Mitch; and dealing with shipping and customs officials. God worked miracles for us in the release of our crated house from customs. With volunteer help, the house was completed in two days, wired and ready to occupy as a much-needed medical center Upon our return Tfrom Honduras]we developed a concrete-and-foam sandwich panel house, which meets many of the criteria we gathered in Honduras. This structure recently debuted in the Calhoun County Home Show and was awarded the "Most Creative"trophy for the show. We plan to take versions of this home to the very poor in our own country, as well as to markets around the world via our contacts with numerous missions groups, relief agencies, and governmental bodies. Our goal is three-fold: 1)to supply large-scale disaster reliefthrough small, durable, reusable and easily erected refugee shelters to groups ofpeople displaced by natural and man-made disaster, 2)to reconstruct housing communities with permanent modular homes configured to meet the social and economic demands ofa given culture, and 3)to strengthen the infrastructure by building self-sustaining indigenous manufacturing facilities which use localgoods and employ national workers. Throughout it all we intend to penetrate these communities with the Word of God in cooperation with local evangelical ministries wherever possible. Imagine the possibilities of rehabilitating communities with homes that can withstand hurricane, fire, and earthquake, be fabricated locally by minimally skilled hands, and be erected to move-in condition in less than one week! We call it our "DuraShelter" We are currently looking for the financial resources to step into the production phase. But for now my partner, Glen, continues in his architecture, Mark lambert in his banking, and I in construction management, looking together to God for His timing and direction in what is sure to be a tremendously thrilling, fulfilling and challenging enterprise. I look forward to giving full time to the process ofproduct development, marketing, public relations, and international travel as vice president of UR Mike and his wife, Sally (Ott)'77, and their children, Mike(17)and Kelsey(14), live in Battle Creek, Michigan. Mike asks for your continued prayer for USI's endeavors and invites you to visit USI's Web site at www.ultrashelter.com. His email address is thenelsonsmOhome.com. 28 Spring Just Getting Started Steve Keller '81 has certainly "Been There, Done That"... and then some. His foray into the music industry has brought him to the point where he can say,"I feel fortunate to be living my dreams and to have found a way to make a living doing something I am so passionate about." Although music had always been a part of Steve's life, he planned to pursue a career in a helping profession following his graduation with a degree in psychology. He had never considered a career in music. However, his heart continued to tug him in that direction. Dr. Stanley Ballard and Dr. Charles Dolph '74 gave him some very wise advice:"You can always go to graduate school. Take a year off and see what happens." And that's just what he did. Steve began his music areer with concerts at churches, youth events, and colleges; writing; and building an awareness of who he was and what made him unique as a performer, musician, and minister. In a few years, he had developed a good regional base, recorded an independent album, and, with the help of his wife, had seen his singles break into the top 20 on both the Christian Hit Radio and Christian Rock charts. Unfortunately, soon after this success, Steve's marriage ended. During the difficult time that followed, Steve moved to Nashville, confused and lost. He did some soul-searching and waited tables until he eventually began playing keyboards in a couple of bands. Within three years of "stumbling upon" the opportunity to work with country remixes, he had produced more than 60 mixes for artists like Tim McGraw, Tracy Byrd, Wynonna, Neil Diamond, and Bryan White. In spite of this success, country music sales clipped, Steve was involved in fewer remixes, and his office lease was up. Steve said, "To those of us who believe, nothing is truly coincidental. Having lived it first hand, I've finally reached a place in my life where I have the faith to trust that, like He has so many times before, God will open doors." Two years ago, another door opened, Steve walked though it, and he is finally seeing the past 20 years of hard work pay off. Two years ago, he joined Chris Parker, president of Whistler's Entertainment Group, who was on the verge of launching a new independent label, i.v. records. Since then, they have seen the birth of the label; the signing of their first act(Wes Cunningham)to Warner Brothers; Steve's appointment as director of A&R for i.v. records; signing of their first management artist; Steve's involvement as a writer and producer on regional and national spots for companies like Ford, Coke, and Mello Yello; and the network television debut of a children's animated special for which he produced music. Steve summed it up:"Although I have, indeed, been there and done that, I feel like the possibilities are endless. I'm just getting started!"