All media for immediate release: July 20 2009

Habitat For Humanity Builds Hope For A Family At Air New Zealand Fashion Week

Habitat for Humanity will join forces with leading female designers to build a house right in the middle of Auckland’s Viaduct during the upcoming Air New Zealand Fashion Week, September 21 to 25.

The three-bedroom house will be completed in five days, and at the end of that time, be relocated by truck to a section in Mangere, where it will become home to a deserving family.

Habitat for Humanity New Zealand is the local arm of the international charity which aims to eliminate substandard housing by offering a “hand-up, not a hand-out” partnership by building or renovating houses that families purchase with affordable loan repayments.

The Fashion Week build—a first for both organisations— is being spearheaded by leading designer Trelise Cooper but once the confirmed Fashion Week line-up is announced at the end of this month, all female designers will be invited to lend a hand, as will other Fashion Week participants, media and industry supporters. Trelise and Habitat for Humanity approached Fashion Week with their vision for the build, and met with a warm response.

“We loved the idea, it was as simple as that,” said Air New Zealand Fashion Week managing director Pieter Stewart. “It will be an extraordinary experience for everyone involved in seeing the house created over the week. Fashion Week is obviously an intense time for our designers and sponsors but the feedback we’re getting already is that many of them can’t wait to get a hammer in their hand.”

Habitat’s NZ Chief Executive, Pete North, says a women’s build was chosen “as a great synergy with Fashion Week. We have done women’s builds before as a way of drawing attention to our projects. In fact a New Zealand team from the Waikato holds the Habitat women’s world record for building a complete house in four days.”

Approximately 240 women will be involved with the build, working in half-day shifts for the five days. Like all Habitat for Humanity building projects, qualified builders and tradespeople will oversee volunteers. Habitat hopes to find qualified female builders to lead this project. Each working session begins with a safety briefing and the volunteers build under expert tutelage.

A registered charity, Habitat for Humanity is financed by donations and the houses are built with volunteer labour. Since its establishment in New Zealand in 1992, Habitat has helped more than 337 families into homes. It has a national support office in Auckland and 12 affiliate offices around the country.

ENDS

www.habitat.org.nz

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