No, we do not require previous construction experience — just a willingness to work hard, learn, and be flexible. But if you do have construction experience (like carpentry, electrical, dry-walling, etc), we encourage you to utilize it on site with us!
All volunteers must be at least 16 years of age. Youth ages 16 and 17 are not permitted to use power tools or work more than 10 feet off the ground.
Hundreds of volunteers contribute their time to Habitat Philadelphia, and based on our current needs you may not see any availability on the days you’d like to work with us. Keep checking the schedule! We open build days on a rolling basis, so staying updated will give you a better chance of signing up for days you prefer.
It all depends! We appreciate your flexibility and openness to all aspects of building; you’ll find out about the day’s projects once you arrive at site. What we’re working on depends on the current phase of home construction, so you could be doing anything from demolition to drywall hanging to landscaping. Your flexibility is the most important thing to bring with you to the work site…remember that all jobs, no matter how “glamorous,” are equally crucial to a well-build Habitat house!
We work from 8:30 am to 3:30 pm. We ask that volunteers arrive on-site promptly at 8:30am for our safety orientation. In order for our projects to be successful, we ask volunteers to commit to the entire day.
We ask for a full day’s commitment from volunteers so that we can keep up with our construction schedules and meet project deadlines. Arriving on site by 8:30 am will ensure that you are included in the day’s plans and receive all the training you need. Late arrivals and early departure make it hard for us to successfully finish the day’s agenda.
We ask that you bring your own water and lunch. You should wear sturdy, closed toe shoes and clothes that you don’t mind getting dirty. We provide all tools and safety equipment (hardhats, safety glasses, earplugs and dust-masks).
We encourage volunteers to bring their own lunch or money to buy something at a nearby corner-store or restaurant. We take an hour-long lunch break and, if volunteers have left for lunch, we ask that they return on time to begin the afternoon’s project.
We build in target neighborhoods throughout the city; our primary areas of concentration are in North Philadelphia, South Philadelphia, West Philadelphia and Germantown. We are currently building at Page Street in North Philadelphia and at 33rd and Oxford Street in Strawberry Mansion.
Our ReStore building is located in South Philly on Washington Ave.
We don’t often cancel build days because we can usually work on indoors projects when we need to. However, if extreme weather is forecast or is already here, we may decide to cancel the work day. In the winter, we base our decision on the Philadelphia School District’s operating schedule. If schools close or delay, we do the same. In the summer and on Saturdays, Habitat will make a decision as soon as possible on the day before and update all volunteers via email and phone. Regardless of the status of a build day, if you don’t feel comfortable travelling to site, that’s perfectly fine — just let us know!
We provide an in-depth safety talk at the beginning of your volunteer day. We make sure you have all the training and supervision you need to complete the day’s project safely. All safety gear is provided on site, and each of our staff members is certified in First Aid and CPR. We want you to be comfortable with the project you’re assigned to; if you’re ever uncomfortable with a task we’ll find something else for you to work on.
If you have a question about safety within the context of the neighborhoods where we work, please email volunteer@habitatphiladelphia.org.