Hammer Tim

e

HABBITAT FOR HUMANITY OF UTAH COUNTY

News

March 2014

PICKING YOUR PASSION! HABITAT TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS

YEAR’S LOVE GIVE UTAH!

Habitat for Humanity of Utah County is joining together with fifteen other Utah County non-profit organizations to promote the second annual Love Give Utah County on March 20, 2014. The one day giving and awareness campaign is part of a statewide initiative called, Love Utah Give Utah, sponsored by the Commu-nity Foundation. The local charities will be focusing on a three week social me-dia campaign starting on March 1st and will be hold-

ing a non-profit fair at the Provo Towne Centre on Saturday, March 15, 2014, from 12-4 to help promote the campaign and encourage donations. Habitat supporters are encouraged to donate online at www.donateutahcounty.org and click on Habitat's logo. Mountain America Credit Union will generously match donations up to $1,000.

HABITAT TO HONOR ITS COMMUNITY SUPPORTERS & VOLUNTEERS

Habitat for Humanity of Utah County will be holding its eighth annual volunteer and community recognition event on Wednesday, March 26, 2014, at 6:00 p.m. at the Riverwoods Manor Re-ception Center in Provo. The annual event, sponsored by Utah Trading Company, will include a delicious dinner and fun activities. Business partners, supporters, and community volunteers

will be honored for their outstanding service efforts with the local Habitat affiliate over the last year. What’s Up

• Habitat for Humanity of Utah County will be sponsoring a table at the Utah Valley Chamber’s Pillar of the Valley event on March 28, 2014 at the Utah Valley Convention Center. The Pillar of the Valley Award was created to honor an individual or individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to the business, civic, social, educational, and cultural climate of Utah Valley. This year’s award recipients will be Elder Dallin H. Oaks and the late Ray Noorda. The local Habitat affiliate has been greatly blessed by the generosity of the Noorda family and are grateful for the opportunity to help honor this great man and his family.

• Habitat for Humanity of Utah County would like to congratulate our friend and honorary crew leader, Noelle Pikus-Pace, on her Silver medal win at the Sochi Olympics. We look forward to having her back on the local build site soon!

• Go grocery shopping and help provide safe and affordable housing for families in need in our community! Sign up for Smith’s Community Rewards Program at www.smithscommunityrewards.com, link your account/card with Habitat for Humanity of Utah County (#48773) and then go shopping at your local Smith’s Grocery Store. Smith’s will then provide a financial contribution to the local Habitat affiliate.

• Win Spring Cleaning Supplies! Habitat for Humanity of Utah County will give free spring cleaning supplies to the first four Hammertime readers who call the office at (801) 344-8527 and answer a newsletter trivial question. Good luck!

• Utah County residents with household hazardous waste items such as old gasoline, paint, and fluorescent light bulbs can dispose of these items safely at the annual Utah County Household Hazardous Collection Day on April 12, 2014 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Provo Towne Centre Parking Lot. Collected paint will be donated to the local Habitat Re-Stores for its paint recycling program. For details, please visit www.UtahCountyHealth.org/HHW.

Volunteer Opportunities

VOLUNTEERS SOUGHT TO SERVE ON

COMMITTEES

Volunteers are needed to serve on all of Habitat’s local committees. Monthly meetings, limited time commitment, no experience necessary, varying inter-ests and skills. Look online at www.habitatuc.org/volunteer/committees.html for more information and meeting times.

MARCH BUILD DAYS

MARCH VOLUNTEER

OPPORTUNITIES

Work in the Orem or Spanish Fork ReStores Monday through Saturday from 10-6

Assist with Habitat Recycling efforts.

Sit at a booth at Provo Towne Centre on Sat-urday, March 15th from 12-4pm during the Love Give Utah Campaign and advocate for Habitat for Humanity of Utah County.

Work at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore:

• Set your own shift anytime the ReStore is open, Monday – Saturday from 10-6

• Wear sturdy shoes and a light jacket

• Orem or Spanish Fork locations

For more information, look online at www.habitatuc.org or contact LeAnn at (801) 368-2250 or leann@habitatuc.org.

You can also sign up online at www.habitat.org/volunteer.

Volunteers are currently being sought to help with construction, renovation, critical home repair, and beautification projects. Build days are now held Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fri-days, and Saturdays. Sign up online at www.habitatuc.org/volunteer.

CREW LEADERS AND SITE HOSTS NEEDED TO

HELP GUIDE CONSTRUCTION

Volunteers with construction experience or those wanting to improve their construction skills are being sought to participate in the affiliate's Crew Leader and Site Host Programs. Orientations are monthly. The next orientation will be on Saturday, March 1, 2014, at the Habitat office in Orem. For information, contact LeAnn at the number or email below.

2 • De-junking your home to get ready for spring? Donate items to the Habitat ReStores in

Utah County and get a tax donation. Your junk maybe someone else’s treasure! Details and locations at www.habitatuc.org/donate/restore

• Habitat’s Cars for Homes can take your old car and help recycle it to generate funds to help build more homes locally in 2014. Find out how you can donate today. http://www.habitatuc.org/habitat_car_donations.html.

• Go Green with Habitat for Humanity! Recycle aluminum cans and scrap metal and help the organization provide safe and affordable housing in our community! Drop off locations listed at www.habitatuc.org/donate/gogreen.html.

• Check out Habitat’s FUNSAVER Site! Habitat for Humanity has partnered with VP Deals to get all the latest bargains on local products/venues. Check out this week’s FUNSAVER specials at www.habitatucdeals.info. A portion of your “fun” purchases will help Habitat further its hous-ing mission in the community.

• Have you tested your home for radon yet? – Habitat is working with the Utah Cancer Action Network, Utah County Health Department, and the Utah Department of Environmental Quality to encourage community members to test their homes for radon. Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer, causing an estimated 22,000 deaths of year in the United States. Habitat offers test kits at the Orem ReStore or online for just $6.00! Learn more at www.habitatuc.org/radon_awareness.html.

• Need tools for your upcoming spring projects? Stop by Habitat for Humanity of Utah County’s tool lending library and “check out” needed tools and lawn care items for free. New tools have been added recently. The lending library, located inside the Habitat ReStore at 340 South Orem Blvd., Orem, is open Monday through Saturday from 10-6. An application and proof of residency are required. Look online at www.habitatuc.org for more information.

3

Home Maintenance Classes

Check out Habitat & Community Action’s Free Home Maintenance Course. The next class will be Wednesday, March 26, 2014, at 6:30 p.m. The topics are: Basic Electrical Repairs, Changing Fur-nace Filter, Gutter and Downspout Care. Classes begin at 6:30 p.m. and are held at the Habitat of-fice at 340 South Orem Blvd., Orem.

At HOME DEPOT – Registration is necessary. Call store or register online. Look online for the March clinic schedule at www.homedepot.com.

At LOWE'S - you must sign up for How-To Clinics by calling 229-1485 or stopping by their store at 140 West University Parkway in Orem. Look online for March clinic schedule at www.lowes.com.

At CENTRAL UTAH GARDENS – Registration is necessary. Look online for upcoming classes at www.centralutahgardens.org/classes_events_concerts.aspx

Home Maintenance Tips (www.howtocleananything.com)

3

Spring Cleaning Tips

We all love spring for its fresh and cozy weather. The chirping of birds, flourishing of flowers, refreshing fragrance fills our heart with peace and joy. But to enjoy that feeling, we have to spend some time on cleanliness and hygiene, to make your house get freshen up and get a head start on the seasons of spring and summer. Our superb and easy to use springs cleaning tip will help you make your house keeping workload not felt at all. You will get to know how to clean anything you have at home and I hope you will enjoy browsing our tips. Let’s get started; Are the walls dirty? Just follow these simple:

Tips for cleaning walls: For cleaning interior walls you would need Wall cleaner, mix 1/2 c. ammonia, 1/4 c. white vinegar, and 1/4 c. baking soda to 1 gal. warm water. If you have a textured walls use ny-lon socks instead of a sponge or cloth to avoid leaving material chunks behind. You can tie a dust cloth over your broom and work from the top down, to dust wall paper. If you have naughty kids, who have filled non-washable papers with pencil marks and drawings with other non-greasy spots, use an art-gum eraser t remove that. You can also remove remove greasy spots or crayon by applying a paste of cleaning fluid and fuller’s earth and cornstarch. Let the wall dry and brush off residue. Repeat the treat-ment until the spot is gone.

For exterior walls Use a water hose to spray the outside of your house. This will remove siding cob-webs and dirt.

If you have textured siding, attach a car-washing brush to the hose to remove dirt.

Tips to clean windows: You can make your own spray cleaner. It’s easy. Fill a spray bottle with 3 tablespoons ammonia, 1 tablespoon vinegar & the remainder with water. After that Dust blinds by wrapping a cloth around a ruler. Spray cloth with a dusting spray and run the flat end across each blind. After that shine the windows using an old newspaper. To avoid streaks, clean windows on an average temperature, preferably on a cloudy day. Dry windows outside in one direction then inside in the other direction so that If you see a streak, you will know which side is the mistake. To clean window sills, pour diluted rubbing alcohol on a cloth and rub the entire surface. Then dust off the sill with a clean cloth.

May your pockets be heavy and your heart be light,May your pockets be heavy and your heart be light,May your pockets be heavy and your heart be light,May your pockets be heavy and your heart be light, May good luck pursue you each morning and night.May good luck pursue you each morning and night.May good luck pursue you each morning and night.May good luck pursue you each morning and night.

~Irish Blessing~Irish Blessing~Irish Blessing~Irish Blessing

4 4 Tips to clean bathroom: If the bathroom mirror is not clean, to remove the dull haze, rub alcohol on the surface. Rubbing alcohol can remove the dull haze from mirrors. Rubbing alcohols also removes spots from bathroom fixtures. But for having a sparkling Glass shower doors, clean it with white vine-gar. If the shower is dirty then use a solution of 1/2 cup vinegar, 1 cup ammonia, and 1/4 cup baking soda added to one gallon of warm water to clean it.

Water spots on metal frames are a great pain in the bathroom. To clean those use the Lemon furniture oil. Rusty tile marks can be removed with kerosene. Running the shower on hot for five minutes will steam the dirt loose. To clean Grout Wash with 2 tablespoons chlorine bleach in one quart of water. Dry thor-oughly, and then apply Several coats of lemon oil. Let dry one hour between coats. Dull walls will shine when washed with vinegar and water and polished with a dry cloth. Lighter fluid will remove most stains from porcelain sinks and bathtubs. How to keep your kitchen clean: Remove stubborn water spots from a stainless sink with a cloth dampened with rubbing alcohol. These spots can be removed with vinegar. If the stainless steel is rusty then rub stainless steel sinks with lighter fluid. For a sparkling white porcelain sink, place paper towels across the bottom of your sink and saturate with house hold bleach. Let it rinse for 8 hour. Be careful and do not use bleach in colored sinks. To fight with refrigerator odor keep an open box of baking soda. It will absorb odors for a month or so. Can also use a few drops vanilla extract on a piece of cotton placed in the refrigerator. This will elimi-nate odors. Wipe refrigerator with vinegar to prevent mildew and Use your vacuum on the front of the coils and mo-tor to remove dust and dirt from the refrigerator. Appliances care: Yellowing of white appliances is a perennial problem. To stop that mix 1/2 cup bleach, 1/4 cup baking soda and 4 cups of warm water. Apply with a sponge & keep for 10 minutes. After that rinse & dry thoroughly. You can also use car wax to wax large appliances and make them shine. You can also use it to remove small scratches as well.

Wood floors: You can make your own floor cleaner. It is very easy to make. Make a solution of 1/2 cup of white vinegar in 1 gallon of warm water. Damp mop with a mop squeezed nearly dry. It is safer to mist the mop with the cleaner than to apply to floor. Do a section at a time and throw an old towel on the floor and scoot back and forth with foot to dry and prevent streaks. Standing liquid from mopping, spills, and pet accidents can damage floors.

The greatest damage done to wood floors is from grit. Mats at doors are necessary to collect grit and it’s important to keep these clean. Frequent dust mopping in high traffic areas to collect grit is the best prevention. This should be done based on the amount of traffic, which may require dust mopping sev-eral times a day in an active household. The brush attachment of a vacuum can be used (no beater bars). Felt and furniture protectors should be installed on furniture. Never scoot furniture on wood. Put a piece of waxed paper under your dust mop. Dirt will stick to the mop and the wax will shine your floors. Removing stains: Stains are our greatest enemies and to fight them is even easier if you are pre-pared. Water Stains: Rub the spot with No. 2 steel wood and rewax. For more serious water stains, lightly sand with fine Sand paper, clean the spot with No. 1 or 00 steel wool and mineral spirits or floor cleaner then refinish and wax.

Never iron a fourNever iron a fourNever iron a fourNever iron a four----leaf clover, because you don't want to press leaf clover, because you don't want to press leaf clover, because you don't want to press leaf clover, because you don't want to press your luck.your luck.your luck.your luck. ~Author Unknown ~Author Unknown ~Author Unknown ~Author Unknown

5 5 Cigarette burns: If not severe, the burn can be removed by rubbing with steel wool moistened with soap and water. Heel and caster marks: Rub vigorously with fine steel wool and floor cleaner. Wipe dry and polish. Ink Stains and Other Dark Spots: Use No. 2 steel wool and floor cleaner to clean the spot and sur-rounding area. Thoroughly wash the affected area. If the spot remains, sand with fine sandpaper, re-wax and polish. Stubborn stains may require that you replace the affected area. Chewing gum and wax deposits: Ice until the deposit is brittle and crumbles off. Pour floor cleaner around the stain so the fluid soaks under and loosens it. Alcohol spots: Rub the spot with liquid or paste wax.

Tips to keep carpets clean: To clean dry spots, loosen soil and vacuum away prior to moistening it. When taking out stains, always use a white cloth. If you have dropped Wax on carpet or upholstery and want to clean it then set a clean, absorbent cloth over the wax stain and hold a hot iron on it. Then remove the cloth. Coat mildly greasy stains with aerosol shaving cream, use a hair dryer to speed dry. Then vacuum. Sprinkle a greasy stain with baking soda, cornstarch or talcum powder. Leave on at least 8 hours, and then vacuum. The works done.

Apply these simple and effective tips and have a happy spring!!

HOUSEHOLD HINT (www.angelfire.com)

REMOVAL OF ADHESIVE STICKERS For stickers on glass use vegetable oil. Soak the item in oil for a couple minutes to remove the sticker easily.

For plastic use WD-40 and let it soak on the item for a couple minutes to remove easily.

For metal use nail polish remover on a cotton ball and let soak in for a couple minutes to remove sticker easily.

For wood use vegetable oil and let it soak in for thirty minutes. Scrape off sticker with a Teflon scraper.

SAVING TIP (www.bankrate.com)

Find a free checking account.

Having the wrong checking account can take hundreds of hard-earned dollars out of your pocket every year. The average interest-bearing checking account charges a monthly service fee of $14.64 and requires maintaining a balance of nearly $6,000 at a near-zero rate of interest to avoid fees, according to the 2013 Bankrate Checking Account survey. Instead, look for an account that charges no monthly service fees or per-transaction fees and doesn't require a minimum bal-ance. Bankrate.com found that while just 38 percent of large banks and thrifts in markets around the country offer a noninterest, free checking account, 72 per-cent of the nation's largest credit unions still do, according to Bankrate's 2013 Credit Union Checking Survey. Even if your bank has eliminated free checking

accounts, that doesn't mean you're stuck paying the fee.

The majority of banks and credit unions will waive the fee for customers with multiple account relation-ships or even something as simple as signing up for direct deposit.

You Can Prevent Carbon Monoxide Exposure

• Do have your heating system, water heater and any other gas, oil, or coal burning appliances ser-viced by a qualified technician every year.

• Do install a battery-operated or battery back-up CO detector in your home and check or replace the battery when you change the time on your clocks each spring and fall. If the detector sounds leave your home immediately and call 911.

• Do seek prompt medical attention if you suspect CO poisoning and are feeling dizzy, light-headed, or nauseous.

6 Savings Strategies (The Simple Dollar) 6

(www.cdc.gov)

Overload a Vacation with Scheduled Activities I’ve gone on one vacation in my life where we had pre-bought tickets for activities on most of the days. I thought I was doing a great job in terms of bargain hunting. Oh, how wrong I was. For one, we didn’t even end up doing some of the activities. We’d go out to eat after a long day with two or three of the activities, be enjoying a beverage out on a patio somewhere, and just decide to skip the evening activity so we wouldn’t have to rush our wonderful dinner. For another, I can’t tell you the number of times we had to rush by things that looked interesting or that we wanted to explore simply because we had to get to some specific place on time. If your travel plans for vacation are starting to look like one of the pages in your daily planner, throw out those travel plans. You miss out on a lot if you vacation that way – and it usually winds up being more expensive if you use a detailed itinerary, too. So, what should you do instead? You should absolutely have a handful of things you’d like to do in mind when you leave. Bring along info for those places, but don’t specifically buy tickets unless there’s a strong chance they’ll be unavailable when you arrive. Yes, that might mean passing up on some bargains on tickets, but I suggest keeping any discounts or coupons that you can use at the time of admission and bringing those along with you as well. On a given day, pick a few things that you might do that day. Don’t insist that you’re going to do all of those things. Just choose a handful that you might do. I suggest choosing things that are geographically linked, so that you can just go to a certain area to do multiple things you’ve decided to consider doing that day. After that, just explore. Let serendipity strike. If you find an interesting place to wander through, wan-der through there. Don’t let yourself be burdened by a tight schedule, and give yourself the freedom to explore the new things you find. What you’ll find is that you end up doing fewer of the planned activities, which is particularly good if those planned activities cost money (which they often do), and you do more unplanned things like wan-dering through a park or visiting a public art display, which are often free. If you end up bumping one or two of the things you’re least interested in doing from your schedule and you do it in a relaxing way, you’ll almost always end up saving money while actually having a better vacation.

Be Careful

7

Benefits of Homeownership

Homeownership Increases Wealth

Homeownership increases individual’s economic independence. A family must pay for hous-ing regardless of type; when their resources are invested in owning a home rather than paid into renting a living space, they are able to accrue wealth over time. Not only do the parents benefit by accruing wealth, but their children are more likely to succeed economically.

• Don't use a generator, charcoal grill, camp stove, or other gasoline or charcoal-burning device inside your home, basement, or garage or near a window.

• Don't run a car or truck inside a garage attached to your house, even if you leave the door open.

• Don't burn anything in a stove or fireplace that isn't vented.

• Don't heat your house with a gas oven.

7

BE GOOD TO YOUR HEALTH (www.healthyhippie.net)

Health tips to kick start spring. When I think of spring I think of nature renaissance, of a brand new start for people, of joy for life and of happiness. Spring is the perfect season for adjusting your way of living, for eating healthier end for spending more time outdoors.

4. Even if some might be happy that spring is

finally here, not all of us can live this won-

derful feeling due to spring allergies. If you

know that you are allergic to pollen it is best to

use air filters indoors during these few weeks,

buy antihistamines and special eye drops, so

that the spring does not take you by surprise

with a tiny allergy.

5. Don’t forget about sunblock lotions. As I’m

sure you will be spending more and more time

outdoors I want to remind you about using spe-

cial creams that block the UVA and UVB from

affecting your skin. Protect your nose, lips and

ears as they tend to get burned a lot more eas-

ily.

6. Organize you time so that you can finish

your daily chars at work or at school and still

be able to go in the park for relaxation. See-

ing how warm it can get and how lovely the

sunlight dances on our skin we might get a little

bit more dreamy and lazy and this might lead us

to neglecting out daily chars. The idea is to

make a plan of how you are going to spent your

day and stick to it. In this way you will not have

any problems with your boss and you will be

able to enjoy every moment of this spring.

Here are some ideas on how to take advantage at

maximum of the good things spring offers us:

1. For a great source of fiber, vitamins, miner-

als, antioxidants, and phytochemicals opt for

fresh vegetables. Since during the winter a lot of

us have relied mostly on the vegetables we have

conserved in the fridge since last fall, now it is the

best moment for going to the nearest market and

buying fresh salad, spinach, dandelion greens and

nettles.

2. I’m sure that winter did not quite tempt you

to go out for any activity, and now your body

is lusting for some jogging, rollerblading or

even a relaxing walk. Take advantage of the

wonderful time you find in the sunny days and go

in the park with your family or with a friend or two.

This will definitely wake you up from your winter

sleep.

3. Watch out for the seasonal cold. You might

believe that winter is the best season to catch

a cold, but you are quite wrong. Especially dur-

ing the spring most of the people with a weak im-

mune system catch a cold or even flu. So the best

thing to do will be to avoid for a few more weeks

the crowded places that can expose you more in-

tensely to viruses.

8 8

Community Action Services offers Home Buyer Education Classes on a monthly basis. Classes in March will be held March 5 and 6, 2014 from 6:00-9:00 p.m. and March 22, 2014 from 9:00 a.m.

to 4:00 p.m. To register, please call (801) 691-5200 or go online to www.communityactionuc.org.

The deadline of March 31, 2014 to sign up for health care and avoid a tax penalty is approach-ing! Community Action Services and Food Bank can help consumers to sign up for Affordable Health Care. For more information or to schedule an appointment, please call 801-373-8200 or 801-691-5200.

Community Action Services and Food Bank will have Financial Literacy Classes on April 15th, 17th, 22nd, and 24th from 6 to 8 pm at Community Action, 815 South Freedom Blvd., Provo. Call 801-373-8200 for more information.

Have your taxes prepared for free! VITA is United Way of Utah County’s Volunteer Income Tax Assis-tance program. Anyone in Utah, Summit or Wasatch Counties with an income of $51,000 or below may be eligible to have their taxes prepared and filed for free by one of our trained volunteers. Local volun-teers are IRS certified and look for specific tax credits like the Earned Income Tax Credit. Volunteers help participants receive the best refund possible. United Way of Utah County’s VITA program is a part of a coalition with other nationwide financial institutions, nonprofit and government agencies and the “Earn It! Keep It! Save It!” program. Call 2-1-1 for an appointment.

Lowry Doors

Merilee Bishop

Mountain America Credit Union

Mountain West Plumbing

Mountainland Plumbing Supply

Oscar Barbosa

UVU Habitat for Humanity Chapter

ATEC

BYU ASCE

IM Flash Technologies

BYU Habitat for Humanity Chapter

BYU MBAA

Dee Perry

Gardner Foundation

Jeanette & Nate Sorensen

LKL Associates

8 RESOURCES

9

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1

2 3 4-Development Services

5 6 7 8

9 10 11-Building 12 13-Family

Partnership 14-Executive

15

16 17-Happy St. Patrick’s Day

18 19 20 21 22

23 24 25 26-Community Recognition —Home Maintenance

27 28 29

30 31

Of Utah County

Development Services March 4, 2014 Noon Office

Building March 11, 2014 2:00 p.m. Central Bank

Family Partnership March 13, 2014 6:30 p.m. Office

Executive March 14, 2014 7:30 a.m. Office

Happy St. Patrick’s Day March 17, 2014

Community Recognition March 26, 2014 6:00 p.m. The Event Manor

Home Maintenance March 26, 2014 6:30 p.m. Office

9