WOMEN BUILD SPONSORS
> For sponsprship information, please contact Beth at b.adams@habitatbucks.org or 2215.822.2812 x305!

$55,000 Legacy Builders: catalyze change for generations to come
Lowe’s

$10,000 Leadership Builders: Instill confidence and develop leaders
The Patricia Kind Family Foundation

$5000 Independence Builders: Improve the well being of children and their mothers
Claneil Foundation
Jones Apparel Group
First Savings Bank of Perkasie

We welcome the chance to have your organization join us! Dowload the 2008 Women Build Call to Action Click to the learn about the great sponsorship opportunities this year: > Women Build 2008 Call to Action

Women Build News + Notes

It's going to be a party!
Join Habitat for Humanity at the Holly Hill Boutique (www.hollyhillboutique.com) for a block party in support of the Women Build program! The event will be held on Sunday, July 20 from 12noon-4pm at the Holly Hill Boutique at 302 West Butler Avenue (Route 202) in New Britain, and will feature food, fun, giveaways and great deals! Be sure to come out for mingling with special guests Miss Southeastern Pennsylvania and Miss Keystone State, and shop for a cause.

Women Build-a-thon wraps up a week of building and empowerment!
We had an incredible week with a record-breaking heat wave, yet our volunteers and Crew Leaders did not wilt! wb logoHabitat for Humanity's Women Build program, nationally underwritten by Lowe's, brings women from all walks of life together to learn construction skills and then use those skills to be part of the solution to poverty housing. Women Build-a-thon Week (June 7 - 14) was dedicated solely to women on the Habitat for Humanity construction site. Volunteers worked on six townhomes, and each volunteer earned her spot on the build-a-thon crew by gathering sponsor pledges. This year, Women Build-a-thon participants contributed nearly 900 volunteer hours and raised over $8,000 for the project! Joining the Women Builders were daily motivational speakers Tammy Schoonover of the Bucks County Opportunity Council, County Commissioner Diane Ellis-Marseglia, Ifeoma Aduba of A Woman's Place, Jeanne Mantell of Bucks County Women's Fund, State Representative Marguerite Quinn, and Reverend Amelie Sell of Pleasantville United Church of Christ. Breakfasts and lunches were provided by Steering Committee member Mary Meister, Deep Run Presbyterian Church, Merck Retirees, Sondra Weidman, Boy Scout Troop 230 and Applebee's of Quakertown.

1st Savings Bank of Perkasie
As Women Build Independence Builders, First Savings of Perkasie heeded the call and came out to build with our Women Build volunteers. Despite temperatures that reached over 100 degrees, the women from First Savings were there in full force. Frederick Shea, president of First Savings, came on site to help present a check and provide much needed relief to his employees with a delivery of water ice!

We have a winner!
Thank you to Shawn Velez, State Farm Agent in Doylestown (www.shawnvelez.com) for donating a wonderful raffle prize of a fall foliage weekend getaway to Hollister Hill Farm Bed and Breakfast in Marshfield, VT. Our winner for this four day, three night weekend, $100 gas card and a half-gallon of the farm's very own maple syrup is Suzanne Meyers of New Hope, PA.

National Women Build Week sponsored by Lowe’s
National Women Build underwriter, Lowe’s, contributed $750,000 to Habitat affiliates nationwide to hold Women Build days during National Women Build Week from May 4-10. Thanks to a $5000 sponsorship to Habitat Bucks, 28 Women Builders participated in a build day at Emerald Hollow on May 7th. They were joined by six employees from Lowe’s in Quakertown and Warrington, and spent the day framing interior and exterior walls, installing the second-floor decking, setting roofing tresses and installing exterior sliding doors. Local Media outlets turned out, including The Intelligencer and Channel 69, recognizing the amazing efforts of our Women Builders and our partners from Lowe’s. Applebee’s provided lunch for the builders.

It's about building a better Bucks!
Our Bucks County Commissioners once again have showed their support of our Women Build Program. The Bucks County Commissioners, James F. Cawley, Esq., Charles H. Martin and Diane M. Ellis-Marseglia, LCSW do hereby proclaim June 7 -14, 2008 "Habitat for Humanity of Bucks County Women Build Week" throughout the county of Bucks. Additionally, they made a donation of $3,500 in honor of the women who will be volunteering their time during our Women Build-a-thon. Thank you for your continued support, Commissioners!

Gracious Living Interiors partners again with Habitat for Humanity
Also on May 4, a Women Build demonstration took place at Gracious Living in Lahaska (http://www.graciousinteriors.com/). Habitat's Women Build crew leaders lead the construction of wooden plant stands and other projects right in the public view on Sunday. Thank you to Melinda Kuehne for hosting all of us for this fun day of building!

Featured Women Builder

Deb Thorrick

Deb Thorrick has been with Women Build since 2005. She missed the first interest meeting, but attended the first round of training clinics ever held at Lowe’s -- and the rest is history!

She became a Crew Leader in 2005 and has been guiding women ever since with her words and stories that not only inspire confidence, but also make you laugh. She has not missed out on a minute of Women Build activities over the years. Why does she keep coming back? “I dedicate it to a bad case of Habitatitis!” says Deb, who has clearly caught the bug!

Deb has been working at Doylestown Hospital for 26 years and was responsible for helping secure a donation for Women Build from the Village Improvement Association, who owns and oversees the operation of the hospital. She is also a dedicated mom of two girls.

Deb's advice to first-time Women Builders is “to enjoy the experience the program to the fullest: networking with the women and families, volunteer for committee work and build on site to gain the full reward. It will give you more then you can imagine back!”

Support of all kinds is needed to make Women Build a success. If you or your organization is interested in providing administrative support, in kind gifts or financial support, please contact Beth at b.adams@habitatbucks.org; 215.822.2812 x305. Please see the bottom of this page for a complete list of advisory board members and sponsors.

Are you here to sponsor a Woman Builder? There are three easy ways to make a donation!
1. Online: Type in the amount you wish to donate below. When you press "donate now" you will be taken to our encrypted, secure server to process your gift. (If applicable, please use the "Special Instructions" box on that page to designate your gift to Women Build.

2. Mail: Send a check, money order or credit card charge directly to our office at 215 Matthews Avenue, New Britain, PA, 18901.

3. Phone: Contact Beth at b.adams@habitatbucks.org or 215.822.2812 x305 to personally discuss your giving options.

The 2008 Women Build Call to Action is here!
Click to download the Women Build Call to Action, and learn about the great sponsorship opportunities this year:
> WB 08 Call to Action (Link will open a PDF in another window.)

The Women Build fundraising effort
Women Build is as much about creating homeownership opportunities for women and their children as it is about construction skills. Building homes requires money. Our partner families pay us the cost of their homes over the life of their mortgage, so we are perpetually struggling to remain ahead of the game financially. Each year, Women Build strives to raise $100,000, which comes close to the amount required to build one home in Emerald Hollow. Over the last three years we have raised over $200,000. We have finished each year short, putting us more than $100,000 behind for the life of the program.

With Women Build 2008 ready to roll, again with a $100,000 goal, I encourage you to think about the ways that you might be able to help us truly succeed this year. This is not necessarily a request for you to draw funds from your own account. Get creative! Think about who you know and how they might be able to help. We will be creating materials specifically to help you with that this year. In the meantime, get those ingenious feminine gears going. Everybody can contribute something and we truly need your help to succeed this year.

Photo, from left to right: Laura McClellan, Peggy McGarvey of the Village Improvement Association for the Doylestown Hospital and Beth Adams at a recent check presentation. The VIA donated $1,500 to the Women Build program.

FUNDS RAISED IN 2008| $97,474
GOAL | $100,000

“It was thrilling to be able to easily raise so much money for the cause, as Habitat for Humanity’s glowing reputation makes it so easy for people to open their checkbooks! Being able to participate with my mother and sister was priceless and I love being able to brag at how stellar my circular power saw skills are!” —Kate White, 2006 participant

> Serve on the steering committee (meets the 2nd Thursday of every month, 6:30pm at the Habitat Bucks office): click for the steering committee goals/objectives.
> Attend construction training clinics hosted by Lowe’s
> Train to become a crew leader: click for the crew leader training plan.
> Participate in a Women Build Day
> Host a fundraiser to benefit Women Build
> Become a Women Build day or program sponsor: Women Build 2008 Call to Action is now available!
> Speak to your contacts about becoming a sponsor
> Assist with events like Strawberry Festival
> Participate in Women Build-a-Thon Week 2008
> Provide a lunch or breakfast during Build-a-Thon Week 2008

For more, download the entire Women Build information packet here!

"Habitat For Humanity has been one of the most gratifying experiences of my life. All of the men and women that I have met are extraordinary people. Every human being involved, from the office and site staff, to the volunteers, to the sponsors, to the home-owners, are truly blessed. I can only hope that I can continue to be a part of this organization, helping decent and deserving families with a hand-up, for many years to come!” — Deb Thorrick, 2005-2007 crew leader

Stay up-to-date and in the loop about the progess Women Build program! The newsletters linked below are written on a semi-monthly basis and are intended to keep the reader informed of team activities and program developments. (Links will open a PDF in another window.)

If you would like to have the the newsletter delivered to your email inbox, please contact Beth at b.adams@habitatbucks.org; 215.822.2812 x305.

WOMEN BUILD ADVISORY BOARD
Dawn Byers, Community Member
Diane Ellis-Marseglia, LCSW, Bucks County, Commissioner
Jeanne Mantell, Bucks County Women’s Fund, Board Member
Kim Noble, The Intelligencer, Advertising Director
Marguerite Quinn, State Representative, 143rd District
Paula Sherer, Thomas B. Builders, Marketing Manager

WOMEN BUILD STEERING COMMITTEE
Most members pictured below. Front row, from left: Trish Lawlor, Janet Wheeler, Patti Post, Bev Cupo
Back row, from left: Alicia Wilhelm(holding daughterAshley ), Kim Noble, Flo Kelly, Deb Thorrick, Laura McClellan, Theresa Sheehan, Mary Meister. Members not pictured: Mary Pat Holewinski, Sandi Ives, Janet Northcott, Gloria Tafel, Paula Sherer.