Building Shelves: A Habitat for Humanity ReStore Comes Back to Life

Before the first speaker took the stage at the 2024 U2030 SPARK Annual Meeting in Nashville, a group of utility leaders spent the morning doing something far removed from their usual work. They were building shelves.

The destination was the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Wilson County, a store that had been closed for nearly four years.

ReStores are more than retail spaces. They sell donated building materials, appliances, and home goods to raise funds that support Habitat’s mission of building affordable housing. When the Wilson County location closed, the community lost not only a store but also an important source of support for local housing efforts.

Under the leadership of Jennifer Keaton, Director of the Habitat for Humanity of Greater Nashville ReStore program, the organization was preparing to reopen the location, larger and stronger than before.

SPARK attendees rolled up their sleeves. Shelving units were assembled. Donated goods were sorted and priced. Inventory was organized. Slowly, what had been an empty space started to resemble a functioning store again.

The work wasn’t glamorous. But leadership rarely is.

By the end of the day, volunteers had moved the reopening one step closer to reality, restoring not just a building but a community resource that will support families for years to come.

Sometimes leadership looks like strategy, and sometimes it’s about building shelves.