Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity

It was a hot, sunny day on Franklin Lane in Anoka June 25.

Women from Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church in East Bethel came together to help out a cause.

They were coming to build a house for Habitat for Humanity on the church’s annual Women Build Day.

In 2003, Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church was looking for a way for its members to become involved in small group ministries.

Putting their minds together Lloyd Packer, Donna Nelson and Jim Nelson made a decision to form a small group to help Habitat for Humanity.

That summer, their church was able to join another church in St. Paul to help rebuild a home.

Along with the weeklong Habitat project, they were also able to work on several one-day projects, as well as assist with A Brush with Kindness home in Minneapolis.

A Brush with Kindness is a program of Habitat for Humanity.

The goal of this program is to help make repairs and paint the homes of seniors or persons who are unable to do so themselves.

From 2004-2006, Our Saviour’s was involved in weeklong projects for A Brush with Kindness homes in Fridley, East Bethel and Forest Lake.

It was in 2004 while working on a home in Maple Grove that Donna Nelson and Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity Site Supervisor Linda Bouley came up with the idea to have an “only women” work a day the following summer.

So in 2005, while working in Vadnais Heights, Our Saviour’s first Women Build Day took place.

Bouley led the women on that ground breaking day and since then, it has become an annual tradition.

This year, Women Build Day had three women along with Nelson and Bouley, who both participated in their fourth Women Build Day.

“I receive great personal satisfaction in standing back and watching women reach beyond their everyday comfort zone as Lynda teaches new skills and women discover strengths and abilities they didn’t realize they had all along,” Nelson said about Women Build Day.

As the years pass, more women want to work on that day than possible.

The weeklong work camp supplies around 75 volunteers each year.

Volunteers from the church provide workers with lunch, treats and beverages for the week.

Each year over 100 members of the church contribute to this mission outreach project.

For more information on the Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity visit www.tchabitat.org .

Brittany Randall

ABC Newspapers

Wednesday, 02 July 2008