Santa Fe Habitat is fortunate to work with truly generous, community-minded companies who are invested in strengthening our city.
We are thrilled to highlight one of our long-time Community Partners and Supporters, Sunwest Construction Specialties. Established in 2006, this company offers old-school service with new-age products! Sunwest specializes in selling, installing, and servicing windows and doors. This family-operated and locally owned business has a heart for giving back to the community, inspired by its founder and CEO, Ra Patterson.
Ra Patterson is a neighborly man. He wears a pristine Sunwest branded ball cap and makes every second of his commute productive as he drives his truck from Belen to Santa Fe. His smile lines are visible, even with a mask on. Ra moved to New Mexico in the 80’s and has partnered with our nonprofit since 2008. For over a decade, Sunwest has sold us eco-friendly Andersen windows at discounted prices and also donates the windows / doors for one full Habitat home annually. Each Santa Fe Habitat house needs as many as 15 windows / doors. An average window can cost upwards of $400 each – as you might imagine, this contribution is invaluable to help us save on construction expenses.
The ethos of Sunwest’s support of Santa Fe Habitat is rooted in the Patterson family’s history. Ra is a second-generation contractor. “I’ve been in construction all my life,” he said. His dad was a home builder. His uncle was a home builder. And now he follows in their industry footsteps, prioritizing ‘giving back’ to the community as they did. “My family would always volunteer to work on churches or help others on community projects. There wasn’t a Habitat back then, so sometimes we would help the elderly who cannot fix things by themselves,” said Ra.
Sunwest was lucky to navigate COVID without letting go of any employees. “When you feel that blessed to keep everyone busy, you want to give back to the community and the industry that keeps you busy and that made you who you are today,” said Ra. He strongly believes it’s wrong to take from an industry without giving to it, “If we don’t give back to these industries, how will we encourage young people to?”
To promote construction, help the community, and follow in his family’s footsteps – Ra does what he can to support Santa Fe Habitat’s building efforts. He hand-picked unique windows to donate to our program that are in-line with our commitment to green building. The chosen product is Fibrex windows by Andersen – one of Habitat for Humanity International’s biggest window suppliers. Made from unwanted and unused window pieces that are ground into a material called Fibrex, this glass is heat-smart – reflecting radiant heat to the warmest part of the glass in the winter and keeping radiant heat out to help with cooling in the summer.
With over 30 years in the construction industry, Ra raves about the quality of our homes, “The houses Santa Fe Habitat builds aren’t average. It’s one of the best constructed homes I’ve seen in a volunteer housing program. They go the extra mile to make sure the quality is there and that the houses are energy-efficient.” He appreciates that Partner Families put in the hours to help build their own house to feel proud of the finished product.
Through this Community Partnership, Ra feels connected to our affordable housing mission. He is proud to support families as they get back on their feet through difficult times. For Ra, giving to our nonprofit is a great way to support families, homebuilding, and the local construction community. Ra said, “Even when you think you’re doing a lot to help others, you step back, and see there’s always more that could be done.”
To learn more about donating materials, offering discounted services, volunteering time, or giving in-kind gifts to Santa Fe Habitat, please reach out to Marilyn Perryman, Director of Development & Marketing (505) 986-5880, ext. 105. You might be eligible for our Tax Credit Program!
