4 FEB 09: A Fuller Life

For awhile Tuesday, I thought I'd have to write something I never expected to write -- shame on Habitat for Humanity. For several hours.... oh wait. I went ahead and wrote that, didn't I?

But anyway: for several hours Tuesday, the Habitat for Humanity web site had nothing on the death of Millard Fuller. After awhile, the silence raised some questions. Was Habitat shunning its cofounder - the man who was kicked out the door four years ago, and practically barred from installing a new one?

But by late Tuesday, the Habitat home page had changed - and now things seemed proper. The organization expressed "deep sorrow" at Millard Fuller's death in the middle of the night. The tribute didn't even mention the 2005 spat with the Habitat board - so at least the charity didn't wallpaper over the matter.

Millard Fuller was born in Lanett, and became a millionaire attorney before he turned 30. But to save his marriage, Fuller sold his business fortune and gave the proceeds to needy people. Several New York bank executives probably need to read Fuller's books right now.

Through contacts at Sumter County's Koinonia Farm, Millard Fuller began home building projects for low-income people. That led to the founding of Habitat for Humanity in 1976 -- and you might say his calling in life was nailed down from there.

After the Habitat board made Millard Fuller walk the plank leave, he founded the "Fuller Center for Housing." It's involved in similar projects, and has scheduled a "Blitz Build" for this summer in Lanett to mark Fuller's 50^th anniversary. And you thought a "Blitz Build" was something college football coaches plan to do today at high schools....

Millard Fuller died around 3:00 a.m. Tuesday, but the memorial plans developed very quickly. A funeral and burial will be held at Koinonia Farm today -- and I'm hearing it's so sudden because Fuller did NOT want his body embalmed. Did he know something about chemicals in farm soil that the rest of us don't?

Millard Fuller reportedly asked to be buried in a "simple pine box." This is surprising, because you don't need a full crew of volunteer construction workers to build one of those.

There's much to admire in the Millard Fuller story. It's a story of seeking fulfillment in something other than money, and offering real help to needy people. Thanks to his vision, hundreds of thousands of families have homes. One man hasn't had that much impact on so many since.... well, since Santonio Holmes satisfied everyone who bet on Pittsburgh in the Super Bowl.

CLASSIC BLOG: We followed Millard Fuller's final years here. Here's a sampling of what we wrote about him, and you can search our site for "Millard" to find more....

18 JAN 04: "People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals" wrote a letter to Habitat for Humanity founder Millard Fuller in Americus, demanding he promise not to harm wildlife during construction projects. How strange is this?!?! We can't recall ever seeing wildlife along Cusseta Road or 30th Avenue.

1 FEB 05: The Habitat for Humanity board fired founder Millard Fuller. I'd say they're putting Fuller out to pasture - but I think Koinonia in Sumter County really is more like a farm.

2 FEB 05: Habitat for Humanity founder Millard Fuller hinted he might file legal action, in the wake of the Habitat board in Americus firing him and his wife. After about 30 years with Habitat projects, we can be sure Fuller knows how to build a case.

6 FEB 05: Habitat for Humanity chapters showed their support for fired founder Millard Fuller by staging "Lay Down Your Hammer" day. Or as some future homeowners might have called it: "Increase My Sweat Equity Day."

(Some Habitat for Humanity leaders believe if former President Carter backs Millard Fuller, work on homes will slow down. They forget one thing -- support for Habitat from Republicans probably would go up.)

12 MAY 05: Habitat for Humanity filed suit against founder Millard Fuller, to keep him from calling his new ministry "Building Habitat." If the Americus organization wins its suit, all the PBS nature shows about creatures "in their natural habitat" may have to be redone.

7 AUG 05: Habitat for Humanity revealed it's thinking about moving its headquarters from Americus to Atlanta. Wow -- this board wants to get as far away from Millard Fuller as it can.

11 JUN 06: The Fuller Center held a fund-raising event in Americus, and director Millard Fuller told WRBL some people donated their wedding rings to his cause. Wasn't this part of Fuller's problem in the first place - accusations that he was a bit too magnetic with the ladies?

BLOG UPDATE: "Happy Slam Day to you," I said to a man on the other side of the lunch counter Tuesday. I should have expected his response.

"I feel slammed, all right."

This man was part of the crew at Denny's on Macon Road, which had quite a challenge. It was part of a nationwide promotion offering free "Grand Slam" breakfasts to all comers. The Columbus manager decided to extend the deadline to 4:00 p.m. - so even DJ's at clubs on Broadway could get up in time for it.

I pondered whether to go early or late to Denny's for a free breakfast. The answer turned out to be late, at about 1:30 p.m. That was good, because a 6:00 a.m. arrival would have put me in a very long line - and early would have made me late for work.

The line after the official lunch hour stretched only one-fourth of the way around Denny's. It moved forward relatively quickly, perhaps because the restaurant offered "rain checks" to people who couldn't wait for a Grand Slam. Sometimes it seems the only people in Columbus who get two-hour lunch breaks are members of the Rotary Club.

But the line allowed me to chat a little with the people around me. For instance, I noted to the man behind me that if this many people lined up for Columbus Catfish tickets, the baseball team still might be in town.

Once we were inside, a Denny's employee walked by with samples of tasty "pancake puppies." They're like hush puppies, only apparently made with pancake batter. If Denny's had restaurants in Britain, I suppose they'd be called Pound Puppies.

I was inside Denny's after about 20 minutes of waiting, and was allowed to take a counter seat. This was one day when being a single guy with no children definitely was an advantage....

In fact, I wasn't the only single guy to take advantage of Grand Slam Day. Several Fort Benning soldiers were spotted at Denny's -- and right down the counter from me was former TV sportscaster Chris Hudgison. But it wasn't quite a "meat market" atmosphere for me. For one thing, I don't eat pork bacon or sausage.

Since I don't eat pork products and I realized Denny's had no alternatives, I asked for a meatless Grand Slam. Does that make it something out of a bridge game - you know, a small slam?

As I enjoyed two pancakes and scrambled eggs minutes later, the waiting line to my right dwindled a good bit. Then a woman sat down next to me and started talking about the Grand Slam promotion. I only learned from watching TV news that it was local Denny's owner Jeanne Muller. She must have thought I was a dashing TV star or something.

"I think some people had a misunderstanding," Jeanne Muller said of the Slam Day promotion. "They thought they were going to get the breakfast" - as in drinks and side orders. The Denny's web site did NOT say drinks were included, so it was no surprise to me. But I wonder how big the restaurant's next water bill is going to be.

Jeanne Muller says the Slam Day promotion took two weeks of preparation. "We've never been on the Super Bowl before," she told me. So that explained the long lines. I thought "Good Morning America" had record numbers of viewers Monday morning.

"We've had some people today who are very appreciative," Jeanne Muller added. Hopefully all the customers went easy on the staff, which worked non-stop for about nine hours. The only "break time" apparently occurred when cooks cracked eggs.

But I wonder how many Columbus Denny's customers really did appreciate the Grand Slam special. I'm hearing the amount left in tips Tuesday was abysmal. And that's ridiculous, considering Tuesday was the Social Security check deposit day....

I'd already decided to leave a tip on my credit card, for the soft drink I purchased with the meal. And given what Jeanne Muller said, I practically doubled what the drink cost. I think that made my total lunch bill match the price of one dessert at a higher-priced restaurant.

WRBL reports the Columbus Denny's wound up serving about 900 Grand Slam plates. The people who picked up rain checks have until 13 February to claim their free breakfasts. So there may be lines outside on Macon Road for a few mornings to come - not to mention jealous employees nearby at Firehouse Subs, plotting to get even with free cookie packs.

BLOG SPECIAL EVENT: We've been asking for words and phrases which are distinctive to the Columbus area. One reader sent us several....

cathead=biscuit

tee-niny=very small

itsy-bitsy=very very small

scrambled dog=hotdog in dish with lots of chile and oyster crackers

supper=last meal of the day

A couple of these were no surprise to me. But "cathead" is a word I've never heard in Columbus before -- not even when I see people from PAWS Humane.

We've had a busy day here, so let's quickly wrap up other news highlights:

+ The midday news revealed Columbus attorney James Elkins was disbarred last week by the Georgia Supreme Court. State records show Elkins admitted lying to a client about a civil case. Well, at least he wasn't lying in any TV commercials....

+ The Phenix City Council voted to spend more than $200,000 to finish the Streetscape project downtown. Officials now promise it will be completed by April - assuming no one shows up with a tape measure, and decides Broad Street still isn't broad enough.

+ A promotional team from Six Flags Over Georgia came to Columbus to hype the coming season. The theme park will open earlier than ever in March, and begin with a weekend "blanket drive." This makes a big assumption. If it's cold in early March, customers may not want to donate the blankets until they leave.

+ Valley city officials reported an animal control officer was bruised in the leg, when a loose goat attacked. And this was a real goat - not an older man visiting from rural Chambers County.

+ The CBS Evening News talked with an employee of the Peanut Corp. of America plant in Blakely. He said sanitation was so bad that "a rat was roasted along with the peanuts." I pity the worker who had to separate the shells that day....

+ Columbus State men's basketball coach Doug Branson told WRBL that losing games "is not normal." It's not? On a typical night, 50 percent of all basketball teams do it.

+ Alabama Athletic Director Mal Moore announced plans to expand an end zone at Bryant-Denny Stadium. This would increase the seating capacity to 101,000 people - and maybe then the Crimson Tide would be allowed to host a Bowl Championship Series game, so they can win one.

+ Instant Message to the Columbus Cottonmouths: That looked like fun Tuesday - having children put paint-coated hands on your white shirts. In fact, it reminded me of a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. The mark was messy, eh?

The number of unique visitors to our blog has doubled since 2006! To advertise to them, offer a story tip, make a PayPal donation or comment on this blog, write me - but be warned, I may post your e-mail comment and offer a reply.

BURKARD BULK MAIL INDEX: 1,482 (+ 57, 4.0%)

The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author -- not necessarily those of anyone else in Columbus living or dead, and perhaps not even you.

© 2003-09 Richard Burkard, all rights reserved.