Communities
Everyone at Huckabee shares the belief that we can shape the lives and futures of others in a positive way – through the buildings we build, the donations we give, or the ways we strive to lead and shape our industry. We have always believed that "giving back" was a key component of being a good corporate citizen.
"We are blessed," says Chris Huckabee, "and part of our job is to give to others."
Since forming in 1967, Huckabee has believed in sharing its success with others by giving back. "I think that it is a duty of our firm to give," says CEO, Chris Huckabee.
In January 2005, the Huckabee Board of Directors set up the Huckabee Community Excellence Fund. A part of the Community Foundation of North Texas, it is a donor-advised fund that has developed an organizational and operational structure for giving. "We want to be certain that the contributions we make are, in fact, making a difference," says Huckabee CFO, Jerry Hammerlun.
The Huckabee Community Excellence Fund focuses attention on important community issues and problems by encouraging both new and established nonprofit organizations to develop programs that address these issues, or to expand existing programs to better meet community needs. Priority categories for funding include: Education, Health, Community Programs and Service and Arts and Cultural Affairs.
The Distribution Committee will consider one-time grants not to exceed $15,000. Applications will be received prior to March 15th and September 15th each year and reviewed in April and October. Below is a link to the guidelines for applying for a grant from the Huckabee Community Excellence Fund. If you have any questions about the Fund, please don't hesitate to call Jerry Hammerlun at 817-377-2969.
Happy Hill Farm Academy/Home is an interdenominational basic child care facility and private academy that provides very specialized help for children who need another chance in life. South of Granbury, Texas, Happy Hill Farm serves troubled, hurting 
children with a broad range of behavioral and academic problems, emotional instability, and often, family trauma. Many of the children are from backgrounds of abuse and neglect and all are unable to live and study in a more traditional family setting.
For a number of years, Huckabee, Inc. has supported Happy Hill Farm. Currently, the firm is providing Happy Hill Farm design services, at no cost, for a new school, a new Welcome Center and a new Guest House.
Each year, six high school students decide to take a step toward their future and away from the relaxation of summer to attend Huckabee’s Next Generation Design Institute, a 10-day internship program developed by the firm in 2003. NGDI is designed to give students with an interest in architecture an opportunity to see how a professional firm functions. Last year’s program partnered with Habitat for Humanity and challenged the students to create a single-family home using sustainable design strategies.
Working along side Huckabee staff in the production department, the students learn how to create effective designs in a team setting, visit construction sites, attend client meetings, learn the business of architecture and meet with Huckabee executives. The students also travel to Texas Tech University for a 2-day visit where the students are able to discover life as an architecture student, develop their final presentation and build models of their project.
At the end, the teams present their final design to a panel of judges, their families, friends and the Huckabee team. All students are awarded college scholarships for their impressive achievements. Since NGDI started, Huckabee has been able to award over $55,000 in college scholarships.
Visit www.nextgenerationdesigninstitute.org for more information.
