BEREA — Habitat for Humanity of Madison and Clark County on Saturday conducted a “women’s build” Saturday in Berea’s Hope Estates subdivision.
About 35 people showed up to work on two houses the organization wants to complete before the end of the year.
Despite the day’s emphasis, however, about half of the 35 workers were men.
That did not bother Helen Ward, president of the international organization’s local affiliate. She was just happy to have so many people swinging hammers and performing other tasks.
“A women’s build is not about excluding men, but including women,” she said. “I’m just glad to have all of the workers on the job today. We need to get these two houses finished, so we can start on a third one before the weather gets too bad.”
“Whenever we have a women’s build, a lot more men than usual show up,” said Amanda Pardieu, a Berea College junior who coordinates the college’s Habitat affiliate.
“We also get more work, and better work, done by everybody, because the women and men try to out do each other,” said Pardieu.
A junior from West Virginia, Pardieu pounded nails into boards on a house’s back deck as she talked.
Most of the women on the job site Saturday were Berea College students.
The size of the men’s contingent was boosted by Jeff McKinney and several of his students from the Clark County Area Technology Center.
In their Winchester shop, the group had prefabricated walls for an outbuilding which they erected Saturday next to a nearly finished house in Hope Estates.
The local Habitat affiliate tries to organize a women’s build about every other year, Ward said. Three years ago, one of the houses in Hope Estates was built entirely by women.
Getting women involved in Habitat helps them to learn new skills, which they may not have thought they could acquire, said Jackie Couture of Waco.
“Most women might look at a power tool and think they could never use one,” she said. “If they come to a Habitat women’s build, they will discover they can.
“I joined Habitat about five years ago, so I could learn how to build my own house,” she said, “and that’s what I did.”
She continues to volunteer for Habitat on a regular basis.
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Nancy Taggart
If the women build ... the men will help
Habitat conducts Women’s Build
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Friday at library : Lecturer to portray founder of Berea
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As the son of a slave-holding father, Fee witnessed firsthand the benefits of having slaves and the profits that could be made from their labor. When he graduated from college and enrolled in Lane Theological Seminary, he began to understand the inherent wrong and destructiveness of slavery. -
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The accident took place about 7 p.m. at the junction of Maple Grove Road and KY 363 south of London, as Johnson was attempting to turn onto the state highway.
Laurel County Chief Deputy Eddy Sizemore said Johnson’s Chevrolet Cavalier pulled out in front of a Dodge Durango driven by Charles Joseph, 19, that was traveling south on KY 363.
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Ian Rosser, an Eastern Kentucky University student from Lexington, clears snow from his car parked on campus Wednesday
morning after about an inch of snow fell in Richmond. Temperatures are forcast to be in the upper 40s today. Kentucky has seen a lot of rain in the past few months, as was predicted by the Farmer's Almanac, but very little snow has fallen. -
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The Appalachian Foothills Therapeutic Equestrian Center will be hosting two, one-day volunteer training workshops for those interested in helping others with special needs.
The volunteer orientation days will be Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., but only one day of training is required, according to Mark Martin who co-owns Appalachian Foothills Therapeutic Equestrian Center (AFTEC) with his wife Cheryl.
The all-volunteer organization, which is based in Jackson County, uses horses to help humans deal with physical and emotional challenges. -
Man accused of holding samurai sword to girlfriend’s throat
A Madison grand jury will hear the case of a man accused of threatening to cut his girlfriend’s head off, and attacking her father with a samurai sword.
Russell M. Masters, 42, of Richmond, is charged with two counts of first-degree wanton endangerment, which is a Class D felony, and fourth-degree assault (domestic violence with minor injury) and resisting arrest, which both are Class A misdemeanors. Masters could receive one to five years in prison on each wanton endangerment charge, and the misdemeanors both carry a maximum sentence of one year in jail. -
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A woman reported to police Monday that she had discovered several items that were missing from her home on South Killarney Drive and her grandmother’s home on Raintree Drive, according to Richmond Police Chief Larry Brock. The items were a set of gold hoop earrings, a white Sony Vaio laptop, a yellow gold heart pendant, a gold tennis bracelet and a ladies’ wedding band with a diamond setting.
The complainant said the belongings had gone missing sometime between August and October. -
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Couple recovering from injuries suffered in weekend house fire
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