Plank by plank, nail by nail, Kent Adcock works to make the District of Columbia a safer, healthier and more just city. The 55-year-old serves as the president and chief executive officer of the District’s chapter of Habitat for Humanity, working with volunteers to build houses alongside families in need. Since 1988, D.C. Habitat has built more than 200 homes. Adcock aims to provide 100 more by 2020. He shared with The Washington Examiner thoughts on a faith that calls him to a life of challenge and service.
Do you consider yourself to be of a specific faith?
Many years ago I made my profession of faith as a Christian and it has served as the most pivotal life decision I have ever made. In my faith I have come to realize that I can know God personally. That relationship isn’t something mystical, or legalistic or exclusive — for me it has been the most liberating, exhilarating and life-altering “ride” of my life.
Do you believe housing to be a basic right? Or, do we have a responsibility to provide shelter for our neighbors in the city?
From a social justice perspective, we must realize that many of the blessings we have and receive have come at the mercy or hands of others. I have benefited, and so have you. So I do not view life through the prism of rights, but responsibility. The real question is, “what has God given into my hands that I can use to help provide opportunities for others?” We, especially as people of faith, have a moral responsibility to demonstrate mercy and provide opportunities to others. We should do this not because it is owed as a right, but because it is the responsible thing to do, and because having a place to call home really matters.
Prior to working with Habitat, you spent part of your career in ministry. How has your faith been impacted by your work outside of a church?
I believe that each and every one of us has a vocational calling on our life, regardless of our occupation. I believe we all will, at some point, be called to account for what we have done with what we have been given. Our vocation is to be the best stewards of the gifts, blessings and resources that we have been given. It happens that my vocational calling matches up with my occupational calling. My faith is expanded and my life inspired when I immerse myself in the “stuff” of life.
How did your time with Habitat in the Gulf Coast shape your beliefs about the value of place?
There is something intrinsically powerful about having a place you can call home. My parents’ home in Gulfport, Miss., was totally destroyed in Hurricane Katrina. Through that, I saw firsthand how powerful “place” can be, not only to stabilizing individuals and families, but whole communities. And I learned that it takes more than “place” alone to bring wholeness. Habitat for Humanity and other great groups do a wonderful job of building houses, but it is the people in those houses who make the supreme difference in their community. I want to know that a place provides fertile ground that makes a difference in the lives of whole communities — that it improves graduation rates, that it expands windows of opportunity, that it helps marshal a healthier environment where health care issues are diminished.
At your core, what is one of your defining beliefs?
I believe that life is an adventure ride of faith. Many years ago I came across a verse in the Bible from Psalm 107: “They that go down to the sea in ships, which do business in great waters; these see the works of the Lord, and his wonders in the deep.” That verse has served to help mark my course and destiny for well over 30 years. I believe many of us live beneath our privilege because we are afraid to be people of faith. Mediocrity is defined by those of us who choose to live our life in the rowboat, in the safety of the harbor. If our boat tips over we can make it to shore by our own devices. Sure, life is safe and predictable, but we rarely catch many fish, and they tend to be rather small. Launching out into the deep water is risky and takes faith, but that is where you catch the big fish.
– Leah Fabel
