Hi! My name is Kim, and I am an MTCC VISTA member serving at 100 Fold Studio. I have now had the opportunity to serve at 100 Fold as an Americorps State member multiple times and now I am serving here as a VISTA member. 100 Fold Studio is an international, nonprofit architecture firm investing in developing communities through design. As a professional firm setting, it is somewhat out of the ordinary for an Americorps placement. Over the years I’ve gotten many questions about the oddities of the combination of the architectural profession and community service. However, as it turns out, there really is an important intersection between architecture and service. Here is my attempt to share that with you:

“How does a professional architecture firm overlap with community service?”

100 Fold Studio, as a faith-based organization, derived one of its core values from a piece of scripture that says: “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others.” At the heart of 100 Fold is an inherent value of service, not only just to serve but to use the skills that they have had the privilege of learning to give back to communities.

In the US, there are 115,000 licensed architects and 41,000 licensure candidates. However, there are rarely opportunities for architects or licensure candidates to serve underserved or developing communities in the US or abroad. This is because typical firms are financially set up to do a couple of pro bono projects a year, and licensure candidates need many working hours in a firm in order to become licensed. As a nonprofit architecture firm, 100 Fold bridges the gap between architecture, training, and service, and allows licensed architects and licensure candidates to dedicate their skills to projects that serve local and international communities.

100 Fold not only serves communities in the projects they do but also invests in the future of communities by investing in young architecture students and professionals. Through internships and a summer program that culminates in a design/build for the local community, 100 Fold passes on the value of service to students and professionals who then can go back out into other communities and use their skills to serve there. As this continues to grow, more and more architects in the professional sphere will carry on the value of service.

“What community needs can an architecture professional meet?”

You may look at this question and say “I know this one! The answer is shelter!” Yes and no. While the basic need for shelter is very pressing for many people, 100 Fold believes that architecture can address our basic human needs while also inviting us into a greater story of beauty, redemption, and flourishing. We do this through investing in young architects, designing strategic projects, and creating a network of architects centered around faith and service.

Architecture at its heart is about people. We spend most of our lives in or around structures. Think about the house you grew up in, the rooms that created space for family memories, your favorite vacation, and the window that perfectly framed a beautiful view, the church or venue you were married in, the school you learned in, or the coffee shop you met friends at. These spaces are integral to our lives. These spaces were all curated by architects. Even what is often the most tedious part of an architect’s job, building code, is about people. It exists to ensure the safety and inclusion of all types of people. 

We all need shelter, that much is obvious. Because architecture plays a large role in our daily lives, the safety, beauty, efficiency, accessibility, and longevity of our built spaces matter. Providing that to underserved communities helps to value the people in those communities and communicate that their lives matter, as a community but also on an individual level. 100 Fold wants to invest in valuing all people through safe, efficient, and inspiring design.

“So you guys design houses?” 

Sometimes! We worked with Habitat for Humanity to design houses for local low-income families. We also designed the Polson Boys and Girls Club, projects that benefit the local tourism industry with the Westshore Visitors Bureau, a playground for Somers Middle School, as well as vocational training and educational centers locally and overseas. As you can see, we value forming relationships with nonprofit organizations that directly serve their communities. These partnerships allow us to have an understanding of community needs from people who have been present in those communities for a while and will continue to be present after our project is finished, and to build the capacities of these important organizations to serve those communities well.

So ultimately 100 Fold and Americorps share a common goal: to bring people and organizations together to serve communities… and get stuff done! I am proud to serve with Americorps and 100 Fold, and I am excited to continue serving with 100 Fold after the end of my Americorps commitment.