Every woman has the power to build the world.

Women Build fundraiser volunteers come together from all walks of life to build stronger, safer communities. Women can create significant change in their neighborhoods by volunteering and bringing attention to the fact that homeownership is a pathway to better financial futures, better education, better health, and a more cared-for, connected community.

Fundraising

Fundraise or donate $400, which directly supports Habitat’s local homebuilding and repair mission.

Teams

Recruit a team to raise funds together, or join as individual — the choice is yours!

Opportunities

Build with us at a Home Preservation project or take part in our first-ever playhouse build competition!

Ages

All folks ages 16 and older are invited to participate, and no prior building experience is required.

Event details:

  • 2024 dates:
    April 30–May 4

  • Register now:
    Email eventservices@sandiegohabitat.org

  • Years running:
    Since 2007 locally and since 1988 nationwide

  • Total raised:
    Over $1.2m locally

Questions? We can help! Check out our FAQs here, or fill out our interest form here for more information.

Join us this spring for our largest fundraiser of the year!

Choose your adventure while supporting more affordable homeownership opportunities in San Diego.

Playhouse Build Competition

Join in the competition to build, design, and decorate a playhouse with nine other teammates at our administrative offices in Kearny Mesa. Teams will work together to create a masterpiece of a playhouse that will be donated to a local family or area nonprofit that works with children. The day will end with voting to crown one team as playhouse champions of 2024!

includes ticket to happy hour

Date:
 Friday, May 3
TIME:
 11am–4pm
COST:
 $400 fundraising minimum per participant

Home Preservation

Build with us at a Home Preservation project, supporting homeowners earning a low income who need assistance with a variety of repairs. Your work ensures that more families can stay in their homes with a renewed sense of dignity and safety for years to come.

includes ticket to happy hour

Date(s):
 Tuesday, April 30–Saturday, May 4
TIME:
 8am–3pm
COST:
 $400 fundraising minimum per participant

Women Build Happy Hour

sponsored by Appfolio

Can’t join us for a full day of building? Join us for happy hour instead! Your $20 ticket includes drinks and light bites, and you’ll get the opportunity to walk through our playhouse garden and vote on your favorite playhouse. Our Women Build event will commence with the honoring of an amazing San Diego Habitat and Women Build supporter!

Date:
 Friday, May 3
TIME:
 3pm–5pm
COST:
 $20 ticket for non-participants, included for Women Builders


Purchase your ticket here ➜

Fundraising incentives:

In addition to a unique one-of-a-kind experience, we also have some fun incentives to motivate builders to fundraise past the required minimum:

$400
(min.)		 Women Build t-shirt + ticket to Women Build Happy Hour
$500 Women Build tote
$1,000 Personalized Habitat hard hat
$1,500 Habitat sweatshirt
$2,500 Power tool from The Original Pink Box
Top Fundraiser

Two-night staycation at Harrah’s Resort Southern California with $300 meal credit and $300 spa credit

Playhouse Competition Winners

Toolbox complete with tools from The Original Pink Box for all 10 team members of winning playhouse

Thank you to our sponsors!

Become a Women Build sponsor!

Share your passion for empowering women in our community and receive great benefits for your company with sellout event’s tremendous reach. Sponsorships start at $5,000.
View 2024 sponsorship opportunities ➜

contact us today

Why Women Build?

At Habitat for Humanity, we know that safe, affordable housing means that individuals and families have the opportunity to thrive. However, women face challenges that make it more difficult to access this basic need. These challenges include:

  • Higher rates of poverty for female heads of households:
    12.8% of adult women lived in poverty in 2022, and 26.7% of female-headed households with children are below the poverty level.

  • Housing discrimination:
    People of color, women, and low-and moderate-income borrowers across the United States of America continue to receive a disproportionate amount of high cost loans.

  • The wage gap:
    Women still earn, on average, 80% of what the average male earns. This pay gap is even greater for Black and Hispanic women, in particular.

Additionally, construction is still a largely male-dominated field. Women Build offers the opportunity for fundraiser volunteers to join us in bringing attention to systemic barriers to affordable housing, and helping to build strength and stability for all of our neighbors.

27% of San Diego Habitat homeowners are single female household heads. Overall, 60% of San Diego Habitat homeowners are women.

40% of households served through our Home Preservation program are headed by single women.

Your questions about Women Build, answered.

More questions?

Reach out to our team at eventservices@sandiegohabitat.org.

Yes, each Women Builder raises or donates a minimum of $400 to participate, which directly supports the building and preservation of Habitat homes throughout San Diego County. Our largest annual fundraiser, Women Build has helped raised over $1.2 million since its inception in 2007!

If you’d like to volunteer outside of Women Build, learn how to get involved here.

Yes, you are welcome to come by yourself, with a group of friends, or with your company. If you are joining as an individual to build a playhouse, we will connect you with your team of 10 before our build day.

Your Home Preservation build day includes a light breakfast, lunch, and drinks. Lunch and drinks are included with playhouse build days, as well as an end-of-afternoon happy hour with beer, wine, and light snacks. We encourage all builders to bring a refillable water bottle!

All builders will receive a Women Build shirt at the beginning of the day, but wear pants and closed-toed shoes that can get dirty and/or splattered with paint. Wear sunscreen, and bring a hat and sunglasses.

No, all are welcome to join! While our event has many female-led teams, we encourage everyone, regardless of how you identify, to join in our building and fundraising efforts.

No experience is necessary, and everyone is welcome! Our construction team and Regular volunteers will be available throughout the day to give you instruction and help train you as you are learning.

After kicking off the day with a short safety briefing and Women Build introduction, builders will be put to work painting, building fences, and cleaning up yard debris. We’ll break for lunch in the early afternoon, and finish up projects by 3pm.

Teams of 10 will receive a playhouse kit to assemble, paint, and decorate. To allow for sufficient planning, teams will be assigned a playhouse theme (i.e., under the sea, construction, princess, superhero, etc.) one week in advance. All needed materials, including themed stencils, will be provided, and scrap wood and cutting tools will be available to add details like corbels, scalloped roof trim, or shutter cutouts. Builders are welcome to bring additional supplies to enhance their playhouse, such as fake flowers for the flower boxes or a door bell.

At the end of the competition, each builder will place their vote for their favorite opposing playhouse, and guest judges — including representatives from organizations to which some playhouses will be donated — will join in on voting. The team with the most votes will receive toolboxes full of tools for each builder, plus 2024 bragging rights!

We encourage you to make a donation, share our Women Build posts on social media, and invite your friends and family members to support San Diego Habitat. Don’t forget to join us for Women Build Happy Hour on Friday, May 3 at 3pm in Kearny Mesa!

If there is interest, we will host a Women Build meet up in the fall to connect with other builders and introduce friends to San Diego Habitat. We also encourage you to sign up as a volunteer to help in the ReStore, in our playhouse shop, and on our build sites (pending availability).