Community Outreach
At Meadowlark Design+Build, we're focused on building better futures, both for the families we build homes for and the community around us. Social responsibility is one of our company's core values, and we believe in doing our part to engage with and support the companies, organizations, and nonprofits that lift our community up. Whether through our contributions of time, materials, or monetary donations, social responsibility is ingrained in everything we do.
Building Better Futures
To us, building better futures (our tagline) means more than just building beautiful, sustainable homes. It means investing in and cultivating a community that we're proud of and that will last long after we're gone. We're proud to support businesses and organizations that share that mission, including the four below:
Habitat for Humanity: Huron Valley ReStore
The Huron Valley ReStore works to build better futures every day by collecting household items from individuals, businesses, and organizations, and selling them to fund a multitude of Habitat for Humanity programs. Their work keeps tons of waste out of landfills every year while supporting programs that empower community members to become homeowners. We're proud to support their mission to develop and improve our community by making homeownership possible for all.
Growing Hope
Growing Hope is working to create an equitable, sustainable local food system that empowers everyone in the community to grow, sell, buy, prepare, and eat nourishing food. Their dedication to supporting our local food system through school garden development, starting and managing local Farmers Markets, establishing urban farms, and so much more shows exactly how they are building better futures in our community.
Peace Neighborhood Center
The Peace Neighborhood Center's vision for our community clearly defines its commitment to building better futures. They have a vision to create "A community where personal growth, opportunity, and diversity are constant; the cycle of poverty and social and economic inequality has been broken."
The Ecology Center
The Ecology Center was organized with one purpose — to develop innovative solutions for healthy people and a healthy planet. The organization works to educate community members, push for policy change, and collaborate with corporations to create meaningful change that builds a better future for our planet and all of us on it. Meadowlark is proud to say our Co-Founder, Doug Selby sits on the board of this future-focused organization.
Affiliations
Meadowlark Design+Build is dedicated to actively supporting our Ann Arbor community, and we are committed to sharing our knowledge and expertise with the public and others in our industry. Co-founder Doug Selby sits on the board of many of the following organizations and participates in a number of industry-related workshops and conferences in an effort to bring our sustainable building practices to a wider audience. We believe that sharing our knowledge and reinvesting in our people, partners, and practices helps us all grow together to create a sustainable future.
BRAG Ann Arbor
The Builders & Remodelers Association of Greater Ann Arbor (BRAG) provides a community for local professionals to learn, share their skills, and connect with others in the industry. BRAG presents annual events like the Home Garden & Lifestyle show, Parade of Homes, and Remodelers Home Tour, helping connect qualified local builders with community members who can benefit from their services.
Green Home Institute
Meadowlark Design+Build is a proud member of the Green Home Institute, a nonprofit that works to empower homeowners and builders to create and renovate healthier and more sustainable homes. The Green Home Institute provides education, training, and 3rd party certification, helping industry professionals build better futures in our community and beyond.
The Ecology Center
Also mentioned in our Building Better Futures section above, Meadowlark Design+Build is not only dedicated to donating resources to the Ecology Center, but our Co-Founder Doug Selby also sits on the board. We align with their mission to create meaningful change that helps us preserve our planet so we may all live better, for longer, and work to support their vision in a number of ways.
Why Do We Believe in Building Better Futures?
Meadowlark Design+Build was founded by Doug Selby and Kirk Brandon, an accountant and a chemist who share a mutual interest in primitive living skills and fine woodworking. When they left their respective careers to start a custom woodworking operation, they did so with the goal of building a company and community that would last long after they were gone.
Why call it Meadowlark? Doug & Kirk are dedicated to environmental stewardship, and learned through their studies that the bird calls heard in an area are an important indicator of the health of the surrounding environment. Thus, Meadowlark was created. Our company's name serves as a constant reminder of our mission and vision — to build better futures, both in the sustainable homes we create and in the sustainable community we cultivate.
That vision is supported by our company values:
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Integrity in our business dealings
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Excellence in design and craftsmanship
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Innovation in sustainable building
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Leadership in the building industry
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Respect for people, buildings and the environment
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Effective communication with all stakeholders
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Constant improvement of our products and techniques
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Long-term, rewarding relationships with our clients and partners
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Service to our community through education, volunteer work and local sourcing
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A collaborative and innovative work environment that helps create personal success
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