board of directors & staff

staff

Executive Director

Elena Cabral

Elena Cabral began volunteering with Habitat in 2014. She lent her skills as a project manager to support our construction efforts, soon becoming the affiliate’s first volunteer to oversee materials procurement. She began coordinating and recruiting volunteers, both on and off the job site. As she fell deeper in love with the mission and families partnering with Habitat, Elena was tapped for roles on the Board of Directors, Family Support Committee, Construction Committee, Executive Committee, affiliate reporting and some grant oversight, and even kept the office afloat during our sole staff member’s maternity leave. She became a driving force behind Habitat’s progress over a four-year period, finding deeper personal fulfillment than she could put in to words.

The stars aligned in October of 2018 when Elena left her board role and assumed the lead staff position as our part-time Executive Director. She builds community relations, serves as the point for home building and repair programs, raises funds and generates donations of material and labor.

Elena resides in Coal City with her husband Jake and son Nick. Contact her at [email protected] or (815) 942-1452. Named a 2018 “Everyday Hero by Shaw Media, you can read more about Elena here.

Business Manager

Jen Williams

Jen Williams joined Habitat as the Administrative Assistant in April 2017, where she ensured the daily accounting operations of the organization, as well as management of the partner family files and other administrative functions. A true servant leader, Jen found that her interests stretched beyond the eight hours per week she was in the office. She and her husband often volunteer for Habitat’s home repair work on the weekends and she stepped in to help the board on special projects. Compelled to help fund the work she was supporting, Jen wrote and received a first-time major grant for home building and regularly goes beyond the scope of her work.

Since October of 2018, Jen has served as the affiliate’s first Business Manager- a part-time role focused on oversight of the office and accounting, and also the processes, reporting and management required to run our multi-facted organization. Jen is also our certified Mortgage Loan Originator, a new State of Illinois requirement which enables Habitat to select families and both hold and service mortgages with the same integrity of for-profit entities.

Jen resides in Diamond with her husband Tom and daughter Emalyn, and has grown sons Adam and Alex. She can be reached at [email protected] or (815)942-1452.