Habitat for Humanity

Frequently Asked Question's

Questions:

Answers:

After I submit my volunteer information and attend an orientation, what is next?

If you are an individual volunteer: After attending the orientation you will be invited to join the Habitat Philadelphia Volunteer Group on Yahoo. You can then receive messages and view posts listing the volunteer opportunities for each month. You will also be able to see event information, non-construction volunteering opportunities and committee information.

If you are a group volunteer: Please complete the Group Build Day Request Form and the fax, mail or email it to the volunteer coordinator. The form can be found here. All groups are asked to fundraise $2500 in support of their work day with Habitat Philadelphia.

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What is considered a group?

Habitat Philadelphia considers a group to be 3-10 people who wish to be scheduled together.

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Do I have to stay on site all day?

Yes, we require that all volunteers stay all day (8:30am-3:30pm). If you have an availability issue, please contact the volunteer coordinator prior to signing up for a build day .

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Do I have to be there at 8:30am when they begin?

Yes. When we start in the morning at 8:30am, your site lead will conduct a safety talk and hand out job assignments. If you are not there first thing in the morning, you will not be familiar with what is going on, and all of the volunteer jobs may be filled.

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What should I leave at home?

Jewelry (it can get damaged or lost very easily), children under the age of 16, and pets.

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Do I have to have previous construction experience?

No. There are skilled individuals on site who will lead you in construction tasks.

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What is the policy if there is inclement weather?

Please check in with the news on the mornings that there is inclement weather. If Philadelphia public schools are closed, Habitat Philadelphia will be closed and there will be no building on site. If you are unsure whether or not to come in for your volunteer activity, please call the volunteer coordinator's cell phone. You will have this number in your volunteer confirmation email .

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Who do I contact if I have a question or problem before a build?

If you have an emergency the night before or morning of a build, please contact the volunteer coordinator's cell phone. This phone number will be given to you in your volunteer confirmation email. If you do not need immediate assistance, please call the volunteer coordinator during regular business hours (Tues-Saturday 8am –4pm) at 215-765-6000 ext. 10 .

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What if I need to cancel?

We do depend on you and sincerely hope that you will be able to make it to your volunteer assignment. Habitat Philadelphia works with its volunteers to achieve its goal of affordable housing, so the projects we set aside for you are important. However, if you do have an emergency and need to cancel, please call the volunteer coordinator at 215-765-6000 ext. 10 (Tues-Saturday 8am 4pm). If you need to cancel the night before or morning of a build day, please contact the volunteer coordinator's cell phone .

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What if I get lost or am running late?

Please check your confirmation email before you leave home. It will contain the address of your build site or location of your other volunteer assignment. If you need specific directions, please request them from the volunteer coordinator beforehand. If you do get lost or you are running late, please call the volunteer coordinator's cell phone so that she can notify the construction site supervisor .

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What do I do for lunch on a build day?

You will be given a lunch break by the construction site supervisor. It will be about an hour long, and you should either bring your lunch or money to buy lunch .

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Where do I park?

Unless otherwise directed, all parking is on-street parking. Please keep this in mind, and give yourself extra time to find parking .

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What if I am running late for an orientation?

Orientation begins promptly at the time for which it is scheduled. If you will be more than 10 minutes late, please plan to attend another orientation. We go over a significant amount of information, and after 10 minutes you have missed a good part of that .

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I requested to be signed up for a certain build day, but I have not received a confirmation email.

The volunteer coordinator will send you a confirmation of your build day. If the day is already full when you sign up, the volunteer coordinator will send an email to let you know that we couldn't fit you on the schedule.

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How do I get directions to my build location or other volunteer assignment?

The volunteer coordinator will give you the address in your confirmation email. If you need something more specific and cannot access mapquest or any other online map program, please contact the volunteer coordinator and request directions at 215-765-6000 ext. 10.

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When does the build schedule go up?

The list of volunteer opportunities will be sent out to those in the Yahoo group around the 25th of each month. Please keep in mind that Habitat Philadelphia schedules a month in advance and that sign-up for a build day is on a first-come, first-served basis .

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What is a build day alternate?

Sometimes people have to cancel their build day; alternates are people who are available on short notice who will be able to fill in on that build day .

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What if my availability changes as an office or event volunteer?

Please notify the volunteer coordinator of any schedule changes .

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How do I get registered for the Habitat Philadelphia Volunteer Group on yahoo?

The volunteer coordinator will send you an invitation to join after you attend a “Getting Started as a Volunteer” orientation session .

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What if I don't have a yahoo email account?

You will need to sign up for a yahoo user id at www.yahoo.com. It is free and you do not have to use for anything other than to log into the group .

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What if I don't have internet access?

You can still sign-up for build days and be an active volunteer! You can request a mail application with volunteer orientation dates. When you are ready to sign up for your build day, just call the volunteer coordinator on the 25th of the month to sign-up. For non-construction volunteering, just let the volunteer coordinator know which opportunities you are interested in. You will be updated.

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Why do you ask groups to fundraise $2500?

Habitat Philadelphia currently spends 85 cents of every dollar it receives on building houses and other program-related expenses. In order to maintain this high ratio of program/administrative costs, we are asking groups to help us offset the costs of group coordination by raising the funds needed to cover the day’s expenses. We ask groups to take on this burden because we, like you, recognize the team-building benefits that are realized from your group experience and because we do not schedule other volunteers on your particular day. We are asking you to make a larger commitment to Habitat Philadelphia and to look at fundraising as the first step in your volunteer experience with Habitat Philadelphia. If you need ideas on how to raise the money, there are plenty of fundraising tips and tools on our website .

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