MONROE — Preparing for a 3,000-mile bicycling trip across the U.S. to support affordable housing might not be on everyone’s list of things to during the summer, but for Monroe High School alumnus David Kelly, it’s been a dream for several years.

“I have wanted to be a part of Bike & Build and bike across the country since my freshman year at UW-Milwaukee,” Kelly said. 

After a former alumni rider gave a presentation at his first University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Habitat for Humanity meeting, Kelly decided that Bike & Build is what would make him happiest.

Kelly has been training for about two months, but will train extensively once the weather is better.

“Using my prior experience as a Monroe High School cross country runner, I learned the importance of creating a thought-out training regimen that gradually challenges me,” Kelly said. “My training consists of a number of longer and easy rides and shorter and tougher rides, with some intervals in the middle. Definitely a lengthy training process, but I love getting out in the fresh air and exercising, so it will be fun.” 

A Cheesemaker through and through, Kelly graduated from Monroe High School in 2013.

“One of my proudest high school moments was when I received the Monroe High School Citizenship Award on graduation day,” Kelly said.

He went on to attend UW-Milwaukee and earned a bachelor’s degree in finance and supply chain management. Kelly plans on attending the State University of New York at Buffalo for graduate school to work toward a master’s degree in urban planning.

While in college, Kelly became aware of the affordable housing issue and participated in UW-Milwaukee’s Habitat for Humanity group, volunteering to build.

According to the National Low-Income Housing Coalition, the U.S. has a shortage of 7.4 million affordable housing units, meaning that roughly 65 of every 100 families in need of a home do not have access to one. 

“One-step further, if we were to assume Monroe’s entire population of 10,847 from the 2010 census was in need of an affordable home due to low income, about 7,050 residents would not be able to obtain one simply because there are not enough to go around,” Kelly said. “This is a problem that is often under-reported when it comes to the greater discussion of poverty, but is crucial in the quality of life for the family for generations and can have lasting impacts on a community as well. I plan to bike across the country to spread awareness about the issue as best I can.”

Since 2003, Bike & Build has donated more than $6.6 million to affordable housing organizations nationwide.

“We are proud of riders like Dave who are committed to the affordable housing cause that he is willing to raise much needed funds and spend more than two months biking across the country,” said Casey Eisenreich, program director at Bike & Build. “Bike & Build provides the opportunity, but it’s our riders who make such a lasting impact on so many communities around the country. Our riders have the amazing opportunity to challenge themselves by biking across the country, while impacting the lives of individuals and families through physical construction of affordable housing, as well as donating and advocating for affordable housing. A summer spent with Bike & Build is often a life changing experience not only for the communities our riders travel through, but for our riders themselves.”

Kelly thinks the biggest challenge will be the mental aspect of riding such long distances day in and day out. 

“I will be doing this while working at Build Days, or days we will spend with local communities building affordable homes, on the days we will not be riding,” he said. “I cannot wait for the challenge so I can really see what I’m made of; I’m excited to see certain parts of the country that I may not have gone to otherwise, and on a bike ride with 31 new friends who feel as strongly as I do about trying to fix the affordable housing crisis.”

Last March, Kelly traveled to El Salvador with the Milwaukee Habitat affiliate to help support the cause on a global scale. 

“I helped build houses for local families and learned about the impact of economic disparities outside of the U.S.,” he said. “As I learn more about the housing crisis, I learn about other factors that go into it as well. The issue of redlining for example — or the systematic segregation of persons into neighborhoods through means of higher mortgage rates — is something I hope to research while in graduate school. I can hopefully use my experience with both to be a force for good when it comes to both crises.” 

Kelly works for Charter Manufacturing in Mequon, but will leave the company at the end of May for Bike & Build. 

He said that his family and friends are excited for him, “but aren’t particularly surprised that I am biking across America since I’ve talked about it for many years. It’s definitely a bonus to have their support for such a journey!” 

Kelly’s current goal is to raise $5,000 needed to participate in the trip, “while also bringing awareness to the issue to those who have never experienced or heard of issues relating to obtaining affordable housing.” 

So far, he has raised $1,000. Kelly added that seeing the Pacific Ocean after biking 4,000 miles from the Atlantic Ocean will be a once-in-a-lifetime feeling. 

“I already know it will go down as one of the happiest days of my life,” he said.