All-female teams build support in the community
Giving a new meaning to the phrase, dress for success, two Mississippi Power all-female teams donned hard hats and safety glasses as they went to work for the National Women Build Week – Habitat for Humanity International.
Becky Montgomery, workforce development and education manager, and Debbie Benefield, district manager, Bay St. Louis Office, led the teams of women who also are all members of the company’s Community Connection volunteer employee group.
The homeowner in Moss Point, Edna Earl Epps, known to her friends and family as Sally, is having a new home built after her original home had to be demolished due to black mold.
The team of employees in Moss Point spent Friday, May 2, building and squaring walls, installing top plates on interior walls and even began sheeting the house.
Mrs. Epps should move into her new home in mid-to-late July, as it is about one-third of the way complete.
The team was surprised when Carlos Fagan, electric serviceman from the Pascagoula Service Center, stopped by to check on Mrs. Epps, his grandmother. Fagan was returning from storm restoration work with Gulf Power following the severe weather that tracked across Southern Company’s service area recently.
Benefield’s team spent, Friday, May 9, in Bay St. Louis on a weatherization project that took place at the home of Dorothy Hall, who is a Mississippi Power customer.
Following a blower door test that indicated air infiltration, the women caulked around windows and doors, sealed around plumbing, installed outlet and switch plate seals, put a gasket seal around the attic door and installed CFL bulbs. The day’s work also included wrapping the water heater and wrapping all plumbing with pipe insulation. Foam attic ventilation baffles were added underneath the eaves of the attic to allow the house to breathe and ventilate more efficiently.
Further work to be done on the home includes replacing the HVAC door, replacing the thermostat and installing ventilation kits in the kitchen and bathroom.
The goal of Habitat for Humanity’s weatherization program is to assist in making homes more comfortable and more affordable for those in need.
