Women Build 2009 week 11 update

At this point in the game, it’s hard to tell from the outside of the house that so much work has been going on. But once you step inside, it’s more than apparent – painted trim around the windows and doors and along the base of the walls, smooth laminate flooring, a kitchen full of cabinets. The light fixtures wait patiently in their boxes for the electrician, and a little tub of spackle sits nearby to fill in any scrapes or nicks in the walls. Now is when the volunteer will tackle many smaller tasks throughout the day, as opposed to spending the whole day hanging sheetrock on the ceiling of a single room. But these small tasks can present challenges just as frustrating as the big ones, as anyone who has trimmed out a window will know.

So many people I talked to were happy that Basra’s home is so close to completion, yet sad to see the end of the build.

“It’s bittersweet,” Betsy told me. “It’s always so fun and exciting to see the house finished, and how beautiful it is, and how quickly everything has come together. But it’s also sad, because this was a really fun project, and it’s such a beautiful neighborhood, and we’ve had so many great ladies out working with us all summer long.”

As we chatted, a team of subcontractors were building the forms for the concrete steps that will lead up to the house. In the back yard, earth-moving equipment had flattened the hills and valleys and filled in the emergency trench that volunteers had frantically dug during the heavy rain (and nearby tornado) that happened earlier this month. It was official: the build was wrapping up.

Cheers to last week’s Team Leaders: Julie Hughes, Andrea Larson with Medtronic, and Jessica Birkelo.

Kris Witsoe from Costco, Lynae Steinhagen and Cara Callahan brought lunches for hungry volunteers, and Julie and Andrea provided lunch for their crews.

To everyone and anyone who was involved with this year’s Women Build: Thank you. Soon, Basra and her children will be enjoying a new, beautiful neighborhood, surrounded by people who are excited to have them as neighbors. They will have safe, decent, affordable housing to call their own, knowing that hundreds of volunteers – strangers who had never met them – helped to build it.

I hope to see you at the home’s Dedication. An e-mail message with details for the dedication and upcoming Women Build activities throughout the year will be coming soon. You can also keep an eye on our website, and our Facebook page, or in the announcements in the Habitat Wire. If you’re inspired to do more to advocate for Habitat (and we hope you are), check out the Housing Matters website to learn more ways you can take action and become part of the solution to the affordable housing crisis.

Take care and be well,

Andrea

Andrea Cole
Women Build 2009 Committee Member
Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity