News Release

Jan Eliot Kicks Off Oregon Women Build Project

Mt. Angel, Ore.  (05/05/2009)  In the days leading up to Mother’s Day, 175 construction crews of women volunteers across the country will be pounding nails and raising walls at Habitat construction sites in all 50 states in recognition of National Women Build Week, May 2 - 10.

On Saturday, May 9, a dream of a new home for a North Willamette Valley woman becomes a reality. Helping to make that dream come true is “Stone Soup” cartoonist Jan Eliot, who will joined local women volunteers in manning tools and building materials at the site of the Nadya Seledkov family’s new home in this Oregon community. “Stone Soup” appears in the Oregonian and the Salem Capital Journal. Eliot will also be signing books at 1:30 p.m. May 9 at the Lunaria Gallery, 113 N..Water St.

Eliot's characters have served as spokescharacters for several years with the Women Build program.

“I have long been inspired by the great work done by Habitat for Humanity,” Eliot said. “But being part of a Women Build adds a very special aspect to the project. Watching women come together for the benefit of a stranger and her family, watching them at the same time learn building skills, do things they never thought they'd be able to tackle, learn to hammer like a pro and create something so significant... believe me, everyone comes away enriched, inspired, and grateful. In my comic strip, Stone Soup, I try to show how the small contributions of many add up to a better life for all. But Habitat for Humanity does this in the real world every day.”

Nadya Seledkov’s home is the first Women Build house for North Willamette Valley Habitat. Seledkov is a single mother of three children, one of whom is severely disabled. The family lives in a pole barn, and the facility is frequently rented for events, often displacing the Seledkovs for days at a time.

Developed through the partnership between Lowe’s and Habitat for Humanity, National Women Build Week challenges women to devote one day to the effort to eliminate poverty housing. The event is an initiative of Habitat for Humanity’s Women Build program, underwritten by Lowe’s, which brings women from all walks of life together to learn construction skills and then use those skills to build simple, decent affordable houses.

Creator(s): Jan Eliot

Contact(s): Kathie Kerr

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