Want to Go “Habitat Crazy”? Try These 9 Tips for a Better Blitz Build

Choosing to undertake a Habitat blitz build is a big decision to say the least. But it’s an activity that not only advances your mission by partnering with a family to build decent, affordable home; a blitz build can elevate your brand reputation and intensify your connections to the community like nothing else.

This past May, Habitat for Humanity of Northern Saratoga, Warren and Washington Counties (NSWWC) took on the challenge with a blitz build in Granville, NY. While the event was over in a relative blink of the eye with the help of the Habitat Crazies and 300 community volunteers, Executive Director Adam Feldman and Volunteer Coordinator Kathy Keenahan came away with several lessons learned that they were willing to share. Here are nine tips for implementing a successful blitz build:

Well in advance of the scheduled build, HFH NSWWC invited Tom Gerdy (of the Habitat Crazies) to speak at a free community lunch that gathered numerous key stakeholders: volunteers, business leaders, code enforcement, and lawmakers to name a few. If Tom has a gift to match his construction talents, it may be his ability to energize others with the prospect of a blitz build (and in the case of municipality representatives, answer their questions and put them at ease). This lunch was critical to lay the groundwork and build an early buzz and interest throughout the community.

Reach out early and establish relationships with any individual or organization that could either be involved in, or be impacted by, your blitz build. As noted, HFH NSWWC engaged code enforcement and the planning board to lunch so they could meet Tom Gerdy and clarify expectations and workflows. They also reached out to law enforcement and EMS so they would be ready for the volunteer influx – EMS also opted to staff an extra crew during the event (though they were not needed).

Early discussions also led to a partnership that provided student groups to assist with parking/traffic control throughout the weekend. Also critical: make the rounds with local neighbors to keep communications open. In the case of the HFH NSWWC build, this relationship-building paid off when neighbors allowed Habitat to borrow electricity for their big pig roast for the event – forgoing the need for a noisy generator kicking on at 2am and disrupting the neighborhood.

Building a house in 48 hours is every bit as wild and exhausting as you might imagine… and then some. While the “public” event drawing the mass of volunteers to the site will often cover the two-day weekend, the Habitat Crazies tend to get to work bright and early the Friday morning before. This is the true start of the event – so you need to have implemented a strong plan by this point.

As far as materials are concerned, consider “rounding up” what you think you will need, and ensure the site materials are set up for easy access. For example, when it comes to the amount of nails you use, Adam Feldman offered simple advice: triple it. Some folks tend keep handfuls of nails in their aprons while they traverse the site, you want to avoid others spending their time trying to find nails. Needless to say, that doesn’t lead to the greatest volunteer experience. With loads of volunteers on site, the HFH NSWWC team also found it helpful to rent enough scaffolding to wrap the entire house, which certainly paid off in providing volunteers access to every stage of the build without delay.

Additionally, HFH NSWWC developed a shift system with volunteers (two shifts on Saturday, one on Sunday). This provided overlap with shifts on Saturday to provide a huge crowd for the local leaders and Habitat staff that spoke at lunch… it also helped that a radio station was on hand conducting live interviews to loan their sound system to the event.

Local Building Material Provider = Your Best Friend

HFH NSWWC had a local hardware provider park a box truck with some extra materials on-site, giving their business some great visibility at the event while giving volunteers quick access to materials. If you can, it’s best to have the entire store of your local building material provider ready in case you discover you need more lumber or realize they sent some of the wrong color siding. These are not the type of hiccups that can be resolved by sending a volunteer for a quick store run, but could bring your build to a crawl.

With lots of new volunteers trying to navigate an exceptionally active build site, there are a few distinct volunteer roles that can help with the process:

• Check-In Volunteers. There will likely be countless new volunteers coming to the site, having a team of check-in volunteers will help you provide a warm welcome, control your initial messaging, and ensure everyone is accounted for. This process is critical, to the point that HFH NSWWC wisely held some practice sessions with these volunteers in advance.
• Assign a few “encouragers”. Stepping on to a build site for the first time can be intimidating, especially when skilled volunteers like the Crazies are traversing the site with ease. Having a couple of people assigned to encourage (or put a hammer in the hand of) any timid volunteers watching from the outside. This simple reassurance can help them find a comfortable entry point to engage and walk away feeling a sense of real connection and contribution to the process.
• Have a “trailer specialist”. Identify your current volunteer(s) familiar with the organization of tools and materials in your trailer and have them camp in front of it for shifts. When a Habitat Crazy or other volunteer approaches, they won’t be spending time digging to try to find a tool that’s not there or putting something back out of place, causing issues later.
• It’s best to have a “runner” or two on hand that can quickly break away and grab any needed supplies at the nearest hardware store.

A blitz build is a perfect opportunity to engage volunteer groups for the most immediate sense of accomplishment. When it comes to arranging volunteer groups with corporate sponsors, this is an easy “pay to play” scenario. A blitz build certainly checks the boxed for community engagement and team building, and many local companies are seeking opportunities that this rare event offers. In HFH NSWWC, a fee structure was established for corporate partners, this helps to control your volunteer numbers and provides the financial support you need for operations. With all the other logistics and planning involved, it’s critical to keep sponsorship opportunities at the top of your mind.

In addition to parking, make plans for where you will place your first-aid station, food for lunch (as well as snacks and water), registration, your trailer, and any other important elements you plan to integrate. This is where being a good neighbor could pay off when space is at a premium – if a neighbor lets you borrow a parking lot/driveway or even a patch of lawn, it can go a long way in giving you the extra space you need to set up for success.

You may think Saturday will be the best day to invite media to capture the most action, but with many news departments spread thin, you may find they either don’t have enough staff or don’t send staff into the field on weekends. Plan to invite media on Friday (there will be plenty of activity by the Crazies to provide great visuals) and communicate the process to them, making them aware that if they return Monday, they’re going to see a house standing in your lot. Also offer to provide additional images/video over the course of the weekend to provide that extra content for the story that will run on Monday/Tuesday.

A blitz build is a once-in-a-lifetime memory that will be treasured by many of the volunteers and community members that participate. Take the opportunity to engage with your volunteers and businesses one more time with an act of appreciation. The HFH NSWWC team created thank you plaques to present to the CEO’s of participating companies, with a personal touch of providing photos (taken on-site by a professional photographer) of their particular volunteer group(s) in action. The result? Employees gathering to share how much they enjoyed their experience with the CEO as asked: “when are we going to do it again”? Sure, a blitz build might not be a weekly project, but with eager volunteers (and donors or advocates) looking for more, now is the time to cultivate your relationship with that business and let them know of other upcoming opportunities to get involved.

For every ounce of excitement, achievement, and reward that comes from a blitz build, there are equal parts organizing, insanity, and exhaustion. But, now several months later, the team at Northern Saratoga, Warren, and Washington Counties will tell you: it was worth every second. Not only for their staff, partner family, and regular volunteers; the event has resonated so strongly in the community, that the press continues to provide coverage. In fact, the impressive nature of a blitz build may be the best outward-facing illustration of the mission we commit to every single day, only on fast-forward: bringing people together to build homes, communities and hope.