Willie Heineke
As the National Service Director at Housing Action Illinois, Willie Heineke (he/him) orchestrates a nationwide AmeriCorps VISTA program known as the Housing Action Corps. Willie has held five separate titles since he first joined the organization in November 2015 as an AmeriCorps VISTA Leader. His roles and responsibilities have primarily focused on managing, enhancing, and expanding the organization’s AmeriCorps program while simultaneously advancing the organization’s Public Education and Organizing goals.
Since Willie joined the organization, in collaboration with staff and AmeriCorps VISTA Leaders, he has grown the Housing Action Corps to offer nearly double the number of service positions. Most recently, he expanded the program to organizations in six other states, while also expanding in Central and Southern Illinois through two initiatives, the Housing Counseling Corps and Green Homes Corps.
Prior to his tenure at Housing Action, Willie completed two separate terms of national service through AmeriCorps VISTA in Prescott, AZ. This was in the same community in which he earned his Bachelor’s Degree at Prescott College, and co-founded two organizations, Rainforest Rescue Coalition and World Action Collective.
Willie’s advice to anyone interested in this kind of work, or service, is a quote from Woodie Guthrie, “Take it easy, but take it.”