LAWRENCE — There are still some people who think a woman's work is in the home.
Yesterday, two dozen women proved that to be true.
An all female crew from the Merrimack Valley and other parts of Massachusetts and New Hampshire came together to rebuild homes destroyed in January's fire on Market and Common streets. Many of the builders took the day off from work, others were retired, and some, like Ruthie Reyes and Melanie Kabenga Meta, will eventually own the homes on Market Street.
"You will never see the men sweeping the floor," volunteer Joanie Warnshuis of Lawrence said as she watched another woman sweep dirt up after putting up a wall.
Women across the country were doing the same thing as part of Women Build Week, sponsored by Lowe's. The home improvement company gave Merrimack Valley Habitat for Humanity $5,000 for supplies for the day.
Two of the homes, which were near completion, were torn down after the Jan. 21 fire that consumed 14 buildings.
In Lawrence, the women raised walls in one home that will eventually house two families, and helped build the floor in another. They also helped build a fence.
So many women wanted to volunteer yesterday that Habitat for Humanity had to turn people away, Habitat for Humanity's faith relations coordinator, Anne Broyles, said.
Among those helping yesterday was Dena Noury, whose Haverhill home was built by Habitat for Humanity in 2004. She lives on 12th Avenue with her husband and two daughters, 1 and 6. Noury will attend the Massachusetts School of Law in Andover in the fall, and hopes to become a real estate lawyer.
Regulars like Michelle Nadeau of North Andover, who helped build the original homes that burned down in the fire, helped novices like Kim Riordan of Newburyport. Riordan's company, Electric Insurance in Beverly, gives her "volunteer days" to get involved locally.
"I feel like I get more out of it than I put in," Nadeau said. "When those homes burnt down, I felt like part of my home burnt as well."
Ellen Parker of North Andover, who is a retired principal from Westford Academy, also pitched in.
"It gives me a brand-new appreciation for people who do this every day," she said as she helped mix cement.
Stephanie Bryant of Andover, who works at the Lawrence Boys & Girls Club, agreed.
"It's something I've always wanted to be a part of," Bryant said, adding that she and her friend Ruthy Olney, also "thought we'd make it a girls' day."
BOX:
Who helped out yesterday?
The following women volunteered to rebuild homes lost in January's devastating fire on the Market and Common streets block.
Anne Marie Bachini of Salem, N.H.; Wendy Brush of North Andover; Stephanie Bryant of Andover; Dena Noury of Haverhill; Suwin Chan of Haverhill; Mary Ditty of Groveland; Laurel Dumas of Groveland; Pat Grimm of North Andover; Susan Johnson of Haverhill; Eileen Kenneally of Arlington; Hilary Loring of Andover; Melanie Kabenga Meta of Lawrence; Martha Muldoon of Newburyport; Michelle Nadeau of North Andover; Ruthy Olney of Andover; Leea Osborne-Trussell of Boxford; Andrea E.K Vannett of Lawrence; Lisa Round of Methuen; Ellen Parker of North Andover; Ruthie Reyes of Lawrence; Kim Riordan of Newburyport; Lisa Smith of Cambridge; Beth Sullivan of Billerica; and Joanie Warnshuis of Lawrence
