Habitat for Humanity of Frederick County Announces Inaugural Frederick Women Build Week
Program is about empowering women from all walks of life to address the need for affordable housing in our communities
FREDERICK, Md., March 12, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- In celebration of International Women's Day, Habitat for Humanity of Frederick County is shining the spotlight on their Women Build program by announcing a new local initiative: Frederick Women Build Week. This weeklong celebration builds on a long history of the organization's Women Build program, which celebrates and empowers women volunteering on their construction sites. The first installment of this annual event will take place June 1 – 8, 2019 at the organization's newest home build site in Middletown.
Habitat for Humanity's Women Build program is about empowering women from all walks of life to address, in a concrete way, the need for affordable housing in our communities. Through Women Build, volunteers and sponsors give local neighbors the strength, stability and self-reliance of affordable home ownership. "So many (women) want an opportunity to learn construction skills but have never felt comfortable on a construction site. There's something about a woman teaching another woman how to properly drive a 16 penny nail into boards and raise a wall," said Teresa Kline, better known as "T" on job sites. Kline has volunteered for Habitat Frederick's Women Build program for many years and has extended that same volunteerism to other Habitat affiliates in this region and in Florida. "I love seeing women hone their skills, gain confidence and then glance across the job site several months later to see that they are teaching the new volunteers. Empowering women is so rewarding and the camaraderie and lasting friendships irreplaceable."
During the 2019 Frederick Women Build Week, women from across the County will come together to advance Habitat Frederick's newest build at 211 S. Jefferson Street in Middletown through volunteerism and financial support. These efforts will help a local family build their dream of affordable home ownership. The organization is currently accepting and reviewing applications from qualified families for this project. The selected partner family will participate in building their own home and then purchase it from Habitat at a subsidized price below market value, for a no down payment, lower interest rate loan, making it affordable for their budget. Habitat is aiming for an April groundbreaking on the project. In addition to the volunteerism of Frederick Women Build Week, the event will raise funds through sponsorships and individual donors, all of which will support the construction costs of the Middletown build.
Women Build is not about excluding men, but is about including women and opening new doors of opportunity for them. The first Women Build home was built in 1991 and the effort grew into an official Habitat for Humanity program in 1998. Since then, women volunteers have constructed over 2,400 homes around the world. Habitat Frederick began the local Women Build program in 2011 during a home build on Madison Street. Following that, women volunteers were active on local project sites as a part of National Women Build Week each spring from 2011 - 2018, after which the national event was canceled. In 2017, the organization constructed a Women Build home on Park Avenue in Brunswick, where women completed the majority of fundraising and volunteerism. That effort continued into the another build right next door in 2018. This history, and a steady increase of women interested in volunteering on Habitat's construction sites, led to the launch of Frederick Women Build Week for 2019, with a commitment from Frederick Habitat to make it an annual event. For more information, the public can visit http://www.frederickhabitat.org/programs/womenbuild or email volunteer(at)frederickhabitat.org.
About Habitat for Humanity of Frederick County:
No matter who we are or where we come from, we all deserve a decent life. We deserve to feel strength and stability day after day. We deserve to know we have power to take care of ourselves and build our own futures. At Habitat for Humanity of Frederick County, this is what unites us. Through shelter, we empower. Our vision is a world where everyone has a decent place to live. For over 25 years, Habitat for Humanity of Frederick County has worked toward that by providing affordable home ownership solutions to hardworking people in Frederick County. Because every one of us deserves the opportunity for a better future. Mission: Seek
SOURCE Habitat for Humanity of Frederick County
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