Quinte area women are invited to grab their hammers, drills and paint brushes for the fourth Women Build for Habitat Prince Edward-Hastings during the week of March 23-27.
“This is a great opportunity for women of all skill levels to come together and be involved in the house construction for the day,” said Len Kennedy, Executive Director of Habitat Prince Edward-Hastings. “It is our hope, through Women Build, to raise the funds necessary to build additional homes for those families in our region that so desperately need affordable, clean and adequate housing.”
Jaime McKeown, volunteer co-ordinator, said the semi-detached home on Sidney Street in Trenton will be almost complete by the end of March.
“Women of all skill levels are invited to participate,” she said. “There will be jobs like painting, trim and building decks.”
Angela Best, a Loyalist College student has been working with Habitat for Humanity on a placement three days a week. She says she loves to come to the Build and eagerly grabs a hammer and begins to work. The new homeowners are also on site, building up their sweat equity whenever they can.
Women make up 50% of Habitat’s volunteer force, yet they account for less than 25% of workers on the construction site. The Women Build program enables women to discover for themselves that they can build Habitat homes and Women Build projects provide an environment in which women can feel comfortable learning skills they might not have the opportunity to learn otherwise.
This fundraising initiative will allow women to volunteer their time to be on site for a minimum donation of $50 as well as raising money via pledges. If $100 in pledge funds is raised, the registration fee will be waived. No construction skills are necessary. To register for this initiative email: info@habitatpeh.org or call 613-969-1415.
Established in Belleville in 1994, Habitat for Humanity Prince Edward-Hastings is a non-profit organization that provides families with the opportunity to purchase a decent, affordable home in their community. To fund their construction and administration costs, Habitat Prince Edward-Hastings also maintains a ReStore that sells new and slightly used building materials, furniture, and home renovations supplies. Before becoming homeowners, partner families must put in 500 hours of “sweat equity” at the build site or in the ReStore. Mortgages are zero down-payment, zero interest and geared toward what the family can afford. To date, Habitat Prince Edward-Hastings has constructed 17 homes in the Quinte region for Habitat families. Habitat for Humanity Prince Edward-Hastings is one of 58 Affiliates of Habitat for Humanity Canada.