MANDEVILLE, LA (December 18, 2009) – In 2010, Disney wants to inspire one million people to volunteer a day of service to a participating organization in their communities and celebrate their good works by giving each of them one-day admission to a theme park at Disneyland® Resort or Walt Disney World® Resort, free. Habitat for Humanity St. Tammany West (Habitat STW) will be one of the organizations providing eligible volunteer opportunities for the program.

Starting January 1, 2010, guests can go to www.disneyparks.com to search for volunteer opportunities and sign up for a day of volunteer service. Volunteers are required to sign up through the DisneyParks.com website in order to receive a free ticket. Ticket quantities for this program are limited. The program begins January 1, 2010 and continues until all tickets are distributed or December 15, 2010, whichever occurs first.

“Habitat for Humanity St. Tammany West already offers a priceless volunteer program by combining learning and service,” says David Crumhorn, Habitat STW’s Chairman of the Board. “The opportunity for a free Disney ticket just makes the experience all that sweeter.”

Habitat STW’s volunteer program provides a hands-on experience for area residents to gain valuable skills, while helping those in need of simple, decent housing. By getting involved with construction, Habitat’s most popular volunteer opportunity, area residents can grow their home improvement skills and apply them in their own homes.

Habitat does not require construction volunteers to have prior experience, you just need a willingness to learn. With guidance from Habitat’s expert construction staff and crew leaders, volunteers complete a multitude of tasks. From hanging siding to installing the last doorknob, each task offers a learning experience that can be taken home at the end of the day. Other skills volunteers may have the opportunity to learn include:

• Drywall installation and repair,
• Flooring installation,
• Minor electrical and plumbing repair,
• Weatherization of doors and windows,
• Landscaping.

“The thing that is really great about helping with Habitat is the wealth of knowledge we gain by learning the various stages of construction,” says Dallas Johnson, a Habitat volunteer. “This has allowed my husband and I to do construction-related or repair projects at home without hiring someone else.”

In addition to volunteering at the work-site, Habitat STW also offers opportunities in its Habitat ReStore. Volunteers are a fundamental part of the success of the ReStore, and tasks include cleaning, stocking, customer service, pick-up assistance, and carpentry work. Store volunteers have a chance to gain retail skills, making this opportunity especially valuable to youth volunteers.
Habitat for Humanity St. Tammany West is an ecumenical Christian ministry dedicated to eliminating poverty housing by building simple, decent and affordable housing. Since it was founded in 1981 as the tenth Habitat affiliate in the US and the first in Louisiana, over 100 repairs, 17 major home renovations and 184 new home construction projects were completed and sold to partner families with no-profit, zero-interest mortgages. For more information about Habitat STW, visit www.habitatstw.org or call 985-893-3172.