Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country
Founded 05-05-05

Women Helping Women, Women Helping the Community

First Habitat for Humanity Women’s Build to Begin in May

Story by Sam Calhoun

A single mother and her child are about to get a unique gift from the community—a gift that will predominantly come from the female population.

For the first time ever, Watauga County Habitat for Humanity is conducting a women’s build, constructing a one-family home on Silverleaf Road in Zionville. Construction is expected to begin in the first week in May and Habitat is appealing to the local community for donations and female volunteers.

When Habitat for Humanity International conducts a women’s build, everyone who physically builds the home is female, with male volunteers acting only as teachers in the process. Here in the High Country, things are a little different. Men will be allowed to volunteer, acting as teachers and builders, but two women will lead the build.

“We won’t exclude men from the job. We can always use [the men’s] muscles and knowledge,” said Judi Scharns, executive director for Watauga County Habitat for Humanity. “We have so many helpful guys that are longtime supporters and volunteers. We don’t discriminate.”

The women’s build will, however, be the first build totally led by women. Architect Kimberly Marlin and contractor Beth Shuford are co-leading the project that will take roughly six months to complete.

“We’ve had women co-lead builds before but this is the first time women will totally run the job,” said Scharns. “It qualifies as a women’s build because of the leadership.”

The project is in very capable hands. The women’s build will be the sixth Habitat project for Shuford who actually chose her current vocation after working on her first Habitat house.

While serving as a house leader—Habitat’s version of a contractor—on another Zionville Habitat house completed in January 2006, Shuford fell in love with the job of being a contractor.

“It changed my whole vocation,” said Shuford.

Soon after, Shuford obtained her contracting license and went into business for herself, pairing with an experienced local builder. Now, she juggles motherhood—she has a child in second grade—with building houses and studying for her REALTOR exam. Her dream is to build and sell houses of her own one day.

“I found that an important part of doing something new is to pair yourself with someone who knows what they’re doing,” said Shuford.

“The scope of the women’s build is to get more people involved,” said Shuford, who hopes that females in the community who have expressed interest in volunteering in the past will step up to the plate for this unique opportunity.

The volunteers will work on the new house every Thursday and Saturday until it is done. Shuford said that volunteers should still show up to build even if they can only spare a few hours of their day.

“I think this would be a great experience for everybody,” said Shuford. “I hope more people show up like I did. It’s just fun to be there.”

On every workday, either Marlin or Shuford will be onsite to assist and guide volunteers. Having co-leaders allows the women to arrange their schedules around childcare, seeing as both are mothers.

“It’s a concentrated effort,” said Shuford.

The women’s build will create a stick-built house as opposed to the packaged houses used in past builds. This formula is new to Shuford, but she’s not fazed.

“It’s just another learning opportunity. I’m still learning constantly,” said Shuford. “On my first build, I learned so much. I learned terminology—that everything is not doohickey and thingamajig—that helped me in the contracting arena.”

According to Scharns, Habitat will begin compiling a list of volunteers on April 30. To volunteer, call 828-268-9545.

“And we still have to raise money for the build,” said Scharns. “The Taste of the High Country only raises one-third of what we need for the year. There is never a time when we don’t need money and volunteers.”

Send donations to Habitat to PO Box 33 DTS, Boone, NC 28607, or drop donations off at 711 George Wilson Road in Boone.

“I’m really excited about helping this family. They’re wonderful. You get a lot of satisfaction out of giving effort to help someone else,” said Shuford.