COOS BAY — Nemesia Chouinard has made a career of helping others. But it took prodding from her co-workers and an international ecumenical ministry to get her to help herself.

Chouinard works as a support services specialist at Coos Elderly Services in North Bend. She manages the finances and completes paperwork for clients whose age or infirmities make such tasks difficult.

“She’s extremely compassionate and caring and patient with them,” said Bernarda Liggett, executive director of Coos Elderly Services. “She’s made for the position.”

When she isn’t helping her clients, she is taking care of her three children, who she is raising by herself. She rents a two-bedroom house in Coos Bay that eats up a good portion of her paycheck. The house is old and the heating poor.

It was this challenging living arrangement combined with Chouinard’s dedication at work that prompted Liggett to take Chouinard aside and offer a suggestion.

She told her to apply for a house through Habitat for Humanity.

“I can’t think of a more worthy person,” Liggett said.

At first, Chouinard didn’t share that conviction. She waited. And waited. So on deadline day, Liggett sent her home to get the forms and apply for the home being built on Blanco Avenue in Empire.

“I didn’t think it would be me,” Chouinard gave in explanation for her procrastination.

In all, 128 people applied for the house. Habitat winnowed the field to four, before informing Chouinard she’d been selected May 2.

“It’s all just surreal. I can’t believe it,” she said. “I drove by a couple times and it’s ‘No way!’”

It was only fitting that her first day on the job site was last Wednesday, during Habitat for Humanity’s National Women Build Week.

As part of the event, crew comprised entirely of women was putting in flooring on the cold, blustery morning.

Among the crew was Chouinard, Liggett, several Habitat board members, a couple Realtors who helped rebuild homes in Mississippi following Hurricane Katrina and Habitat veteran Betty Bassett.

Chouinard’s is the fourth Habitat house Bassett has helped build. Most of the time she is the only woman on the crew. So it was quite a change to be hammering nails and painting walls with women beside her.

“The thing is (the men) know what they are doing,” she said. “Today I’m doing more organizing and directing. It’s quite a change.”

The women’s construction experience ranged from some to none at all.

Susan Karolyi joined the local Habitat board four or five months ago but she was participating at a construction site for the first time. She nursed a bruised finger from an errant hammer swing, but said she still was having a good time. She credited her hard-work attitude to the oversight of Larry Haun, a longtime Habitat construction leader, who offered guidance and moral support.

“He’s been very patient,” she said.

Lisa Higbee and Molly Stevens had some experience, having traveled to Biloxi, Miss., in February to help rebuild homes there as part of a collaborative effort between Habitat and the National Association of Realtors. For 10 days, they worked from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

“It gave us confidence” said Stevens.

The collection of women worked together last week for only one day, but it was significant for them as well as for the local organization.

Habitat for Humanity has organized women builds for more than 10 years, but this was the first such venture in Coos Bay.

“We’ve never even considered doing it,” said Sheila Ward, the local Habitat affiliate’s executive director. “We have a lot of women who have expressed interest in this.”

There also was a financial benefit to hosting a one-day event, as the affiliate will receive $5,000 from Lowe’s Home Improvement.

Such a donation is significant, Ward said, noting it costs between $45,000 and $50,000 to build a Habitat home. This figure includes some skilled labor, such as electrical and foundation work, though a good portion of the project is done by volunteers.

Chouinard, like all recipients of a Habitat house, must pay for the home, but with a zero-interest mortgage. She also must provide 500 hours of “sweat equity” on the house by assisting with the build, though friends and family may provide assistance as well. In an effort to help Chouinard reach that number, several of her co-workers joined the women’s crew Wednesday.

“We shut down the office!” said Liggett.

The wind was blowing fiercely in the faces of the various women — friends and strangers. If all goes well, the house might be finished by the end of summer, though almost certainly by the start of 2009.

“It’s nice to have support from people I’ve never seen in my life,” said Chouinard, her green eyes gazing out on the foundation that soon will support her family’s first home.