Girl Power

The Seahawks Auxiliary Group joins with Habitat for Humanity’s Women Build program to help provide affordable housing.

Photography by James R. Anderson

This Month: Seattle Washington

Tool belts jingled, hammers pounded, and sawdust filled the air last October, when Habitat for Humanity of Seattle/South King County partnered with the wives, girlfriends, and female staff members of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team to frame two new homes at High Point in West Seattle. These women, who make up the Seahawks Auxiliary Group, were participating in Women Build, a Habitat for Humanity International program underwritten by Lowe's.

As the official home improvement retailer for the NFL team and its home stadium, Qwest Field, Lowe's provides community involvement opportunities for the Seahawks Auxiliary Group. The houses framed in the October project are two of 20 homes that Habitat for Humanity of Seattle/South King County is building in High Point, a new master- planned neighborhood designed by the Seattle Housing Authority.

Featuring low-impact sustainable design in an urban setting, the High Point community is the first large-scale development of its kind in the United States. More than 100 mature trees were preserved, and thousands more have been planted. The plan also implemented a natural drainage system to manage storm water, improve water quality, and protect salmon habitat. The finished product, scheduled to be complete in 2009, will be a mixed-income, pedestrian-oriented community that includes 1,600 homes in the market-rate and affordable categories. A week before the build, Lowe's hosted a one-day training workshop for the Seahawks Auxiliary Group and supplied hats and gloves. Habitat for Humanity and Lowe's staff instructed the women in the basics of framing a house, such as how to square and plumb the frame, what types of nails are appropriate for framing, and the differences between framing hammers and finishing hammers.

Although the weather was dreary, cold, and wet on the day of the build, nothing could dampen the women's spirits. "The whole day was great," says Julia Ashworth, a member of the Seahawks Auxiliary Group. "Knowing that [we] could help out and be a part of a great organization like Habitat for Humanity is a privilege." Since the official creation of Women Build in 1998, the program has put up more than 1,000 homes around the world. Its mission is to empower women to take action against poverty-level housing conditions by building homes and communities. Women Build teaches construction skills that the participants otherwise might not have the chance to learn. In partnership with Lowe's, local Habitat affiliates and the Habitat for Humanity International Women Build department provide training, education, and resources for volunteers, preparing them for their projects as well as transforming them into informed advocates for Habitat for Humanity. Since 2004, Lowe's has offered a series of six Women Build how-to clinics for the benefit of any Habitat affiliate. "I love to work outside, get my hands dirty, and accomplish something, especially since it is helping to provide housing for a family that needs it," Ashworth says. "I believe that [Habitat for Humanity] is a great organization."

As the underwriter for Women Build, Lowe's is helping to make sure that the program continues to grow. To learn how you can get involved with Women Build or to locate a Habitat affiliate near you, go to Habitat.org.

The group braved a wet workday to help out on the Habitat project.

Tool School

Inspired Women

It's never too late to fasten on that tool belt and become handier around the house.

Kobalt's 22-piece tool bag set (#278617), shown left, will get you off on the right foot. Complete with a cool blue bag, the tools in this set feature a soft-grip design that reduces vibration as well as hand fatigue.
If you would like a set that includes more tools, try the Task Force 43-piece tool set (#246673). It includes a level, tape measure, hammer, and pliers, plus a handsaw, a hacksaw, a micro screwdriver set, scissors, and more.
If you don't have much experience with tools, however, don't take on a leaky faucet or broken window unprepared! Pick up a copy of Dare to Repair, a "do-it-herself" guide that gives step-by-step instructions and tools needed for many minor home repairs.

Submit Comments & Photos

1 out of 1 people found this comment helpful. Was this comment helpful?

Flag this comment.

Please feel free to post a comment and someone from LowesCreativeIdeas.com will review your submission. You can check back after 24 hours to see if your comment has been posted.

Fields in BOLD are required to preview and submit your comment.

Your Name (displayed with comment)
close[X]

Instructions

Your email will only be used in the event that one of our moderators needs to clarify your comment. It will be used strictly in the context of or relating to your comment.

Your email will NOT be used for marketing purposes or shared with any 3rd parties.

Your Email
(Why do we ask?)
Your Location (eg, 'Chicago, IL')
Your Photo

Have a photo? Attach it to your comment here.
Make sure your photo meets the following requirements:
Max File Size: 2 MB
File Types: jpeg/jpg, gif
Photos will be scaled to fit this space.

Upload Photo
Your Comment

Character count: 0

(500 character limit)
Enter the above image text

close[X]

If you do not see the security words image:

• Make sure the version of your browser is current. For example, you need to have at least Internet Explorer 5.0 or Netscape 6.0 or higher.

• Make sure your graphics (pictures and images) are turned on or enabled in your browser.

• Refresh your browser and try again. You may want to copy your comment though as it will not be saved.

Can't see the image?

close[X]

Instructions

Please enter the words you see in the box, in order and separated by a space. Doing so helps prevent automated programs from abusing this service.

If you are not sure what the words are, either enter your best guess or refresh the browser for a new set image.

What is this?
Terms & Conditions Terms of Use & Guidelines Lowe’s Creative Ideas Web Community Lowe’s and its affiliates (“Lowe’s”) offer this Creative Ideas Web Community (“Community”) to users to enable them to share projects and ideas and discuss how to use and enjoy a variety of home improvement products and services. If you have questions or concerns regarding a Lowe’s home improvement store or the services or products offered by Lowe’s, please contact at http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=topicSelect&topic=contactUs These Terms of Use & Guidelines (“Community Terms”) govern your use of and conduct associated with the Community, including all comments, information, and any other content submitted by you or other users. If you submit any content on or through the Community, you are acknowledging and accepting these Community Terms, as well as Lowe’s Terms and Conditions of Use (“General Terms”) for Lowes.com and Lowe’s Privacy and Security Statements (“Privacy Terms”). To the extent of any conflict between these Community Terms and the General Terms, Privacy Terms, these Community Terms shall control with respect to the Community. Lowe’s has the right, but not the obligation, to monitor, review, revise, and/or remove any content posted by a user. Lowe’s assumes no liability for any content posted by a user and Lowe’s does not regularly review all such content. You are solely responsible for any content that you submit, the consequences of posting that content, and your reliance on any communications found in the Community. By submitting any content you acknowledge and agree to the following: • Lowe's has the right but not the obligation to display all content you provide for public view; • The content you submit is non-confidential for all purposes; • You are not using a false e-mail address, impersonating any person or entity, or otherwise misrepresenting yourself or the origin of the content you submit; • You represent and warrant that you own or otherwise control all of the rights to content you submit; • All content you post is accurate, truthful, and lawful; • Use of the content you submit does not violate these Community Terms; • Use of the content you submit will not cause injury or harm to any entity or person; • Use of the content you submit will not give rise to any claim against Lowe’s, and the content you submit shall not, in the judgment of Lowe’s, expose Lowe’s or any of its customers or suppliers to any liability or detriment of any type; • You grant to Lowe’s and all Community users an unrestricted, irrevocable, world-wide, royalty-free license (with the right to sublicense through multiple tiers of sublicensees) and right: (i) to use, reproduce, display, perform, modify, adapt, publish, translate, and transmit and distribute your content for any purpose and in any media; (ii) to rate, review, comment on and tag your content; and (iii) to send and distribute your content via E-mail, Instant Messenger or otherwise over or through the Internet or any other electronic communications system; • With regard to any media content that you submit (such as photos, audio, etc.), you warrant that you have permission from all persons appearing in such media content for you to make the submission and grant the rights described herein, and you certify that any person pictured in the submitted media content (or, if a minor, his/her parent/legal guardian) authorizes Lowe’s to use, copy, print, display, reproduce, modify, publish, post, transmit and distribute the media content and any material included in such media content. • You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless Lowe's, its affiliates and subsidiaries, and each of their respective directors, officers, employees, shareholders, agents, attorneys, assigns and successors-in-interest, and third-party service providers from and against any and all liabilities, damages, losses, claims, demands, assessments, actions, causes of action, costs (including attorneys' fees and expenses) and any of them, arising out of or resulting from the content you submit, your failure to comply with the terms set forth herein, or your violation of any law or the rights of any third party; • In addition to all other remedies available, you acknowledge that Lowe’s has the right to (i) remove your content from the Community or refuse to include your content in the Community, (ii) suspend or terminate your account or refuse to grant you access to any current or future use of the Community or any other Lowe’s service, with or without warning, if Lowe’s, in its sole discretion, believes you have: (1) violated or tried to violate the rights of Lowe’s or others; or (2) violated or tried to violate or otherwise acted inconsistent with these Community Terms or any other applicable terms or conditions. • Lowe's assumes no liability for any content posted by you or any third-party; and • All content you submit is subject to each of these Community Terms, the General Terms, and the Privacy Terms, collectively. You further agree and represent that you will not submit any content: • that is illegal, obscene, vulgar, offensive, threatening, harassing, defamatory, libelous, slanderous, hateful, abusive, discriminatory, racially or religiously biased or offensive, pornographic, profane, sexually explicit, indecent or embarrassing to any other person or entity, or otherwise restricts or inhibits any other user from using and enjoying the Community; • invasive of privacy, infringing of intellectual property rights, injurious or objectionable to third parties, • that is fraudulent or otherwise constitutes or contains false, inaccurate or misleading indications of origin, endorsement or statements of fact; • that violates, plagiarizes, misappropriates or infringes the rights of third parties including, without limitation, copyright, trademark, trade secret, confidentiality, contract, patent, rights of privacy or publicity or any other intellectual property or proprietary right; • that violates any law, statute, ordinance, code or regulation; • that consists of or contains advertisements, political campaigning, commercial solicitations, chain letters or pyramid schemes of any kind, mass mailings, any form of "spam", embedded links, or references to other products, offers, Websites, URLs, or viruses. For the purposes of these Community Terms, "viruses" includes, without limitation, software routines, codes or instructions, hardware components or combinations thereof, that are designed to (a) permit unauthorized access to software; or (b) disable, delete, modify, damage, or erase software, hardware or data, including, but not limited to, components that are commonly referred to as "viruses," "back doors," "time bombs," "Trojan Horses," "worms" or "drop dead devices"; • that consists of or contains e-mail addresses, phone numbers, physical addresses or other forms of personal or contact information; and • for which you were compensated or provided any consideration by any third party. Lowe's has no obligation to post any content that you or anyone else submits. Without limiting the foregoing, Lowe’s reserves the right not to post your content if it contains any of the following or violates other posted or referenced guidelines: • Keep it clean: Obscenities, profanity, discriminatory language, or other language not suitable for public display. • No ads: Advertising or referencing other products, offers, or websites is strictly prohibited. • No personal information: Email addresses, phone numbers, mailing addresses or other personal information will not be accepted for posting. • No content that identifies any specific store or employee. • No harassing content: Do not attack other users or make overly critical comments regarding other reviews. • No off-topic information. Lowe’s shall have no liability to users of the Community or any other person or entity for refusing or failing to post, or removing, editing, or disclosing, any content that you or anyone else submits. Copyright Infringement If you believe any content accessible on or from the Community (including the content of other users’ posts and submissions) infringes your copyright rights, you may request removal of such content (or access thereto) by submitting a DMCA Notification at http://lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=topicSelect&topic=dmcaNAT. If your submitted content was removed from the Community (or access thereto is disabled) due to an allegation of copyright infringement, and you believe such content is not infringing, or that you have the authorization from the copyright owner, the copyright owner's agent, or pursuant to the law, to post such content, you may submit a DMCA Counter-Notification at http://lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=topicSelect&topic=dmcaCN. In an effort to protect the rights of copyright owners, Lowe’s maintains a policy for the termination, in appropriate circumstances, of the accounts of repeat infringers.
I have read and agree to all of the Terms & Conditions
Please review your comment for accuracy and click submit. To edit your comment, click edit.
Once submitted LowesCreativeIdeas.com will review your submission. You can check back after 24 hours to see if your comment has been posted.

Total Votes: 5

(1)

close[X]

These "social bookmarking" services make it easier to share and manage your favorite online content.

StumbleUpon, digg, and del.icio.us help you gather content from around the web, describe it how you see fit, and tag it for easy sorting. These sites also allow you to see what other people are gathering and tagging (if they've made it public), and find new content that may interest you.

Social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace also allow you to share content that you find interesting, with people who visit or subscribe to your personal profile.

(What are these?)