Rita Case and the Rick Case Automotive Group team during Habitat Broward’s Susie Levan Women Build 2025 at the North Lauderdale Village community set to open early 2026 / Courtesy Taylor A. Smith

NORTH LAUDERDALE, Fla. (June 2, 2025) – More than 250 influential women and volunteers joined Habitat for Humanity of Broward from May 13–17 for the “Susie Levan Women Build 2025,” a powerful five-day event dedicated to building homes, hope, and a lasting legacy for eight deserving families.

Held in honor of the late philanthropist and women’s empowerment advocate Susie Levan, this year’s Women Build brought together hundreds of leading women from across Broward County to roll up their sleeves and construct homes in Habitat Broward’s newest community, North Lauderdale Village, set to open January 2026.

“Women Build is more than women building homes, it’s a movement led by women to uplift other women and families on their journey toward affordable homeownership,” said Nancy Robin, CEO of Habitat Broward. “This year’s build is a beautiful tribute to Susie’s legacy and a powerful demonstration of what can happen when community, compassion, and courage come together.”

Influential women leading the force for the initiative included co-chairs and home sponsors Lily Pardo of WSVN/Channel 7 and philanthropist, Nancy Daly. Additional home sponsors and participants on this build included City Furniture, Susie and Alan B. Levan Family Foundation, Falcone Group, UKG, Rick Case Automotive Group and Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood. Event sponsors such as The Jack B Rettig Foundation, AutoNation, Bank of America and the City of North Lauderdale along with dozens of additional teams including GL Homes, Miller Construction, Moss and Associates, Cushman Wakefield, The Happy Pineapple Charity Fund and Thrivewell.

Together, these women, supported by a broad coalition of sponsors, future homeowners, and volunteers, helped lay the literal and figurative foundation for eight families striving to achieve the stability of homeownership.

One of those future homeowners is Catoddra Crear, a dedicated teacher for the visually impaired with Miami-Dade County Public Schools and single mother of a young son with autism. Currently living with family without adequate privacy, Crear says the need for stability and space is critical to her son’s development.

“Homeownership means giving my son a safe space to be himself, a home where he can feel free, loved, and understood,” said Crear. “I want him to know that no matter how different the world may seem, he’ll always have a place that’s just for him.”

This year’s build not only honored Susie Levan’s lifetime of advocacy but also advanced her mission of empowering women through action. A trailblazer in Broward, Levan was the founder of the Work-Life Balance Institute for Women and Balance Magazine and dedicated her life to charitable efforts through the Susie and Alan B. Levan Family Foundation.

Since its inception in 2002, Habitat Broward’s WOMENBuild program has engaged more than 1,000 women to help fund and construct 52 affordable homes. The program is part of a global movement that aims to empower women to take action against housing insecurity, particularly in regions like Broward County — one of the most cost-burdened housing markets in the country.

For more information or to get involved in future Women Build events, visit www.habitatbroward.org or email info@habitatbroward.org.

About Habitat for Humanity of Broward
Seeking to put God’s love into action, Habitat for Humanity of Broward brings people together to build homes, communities, and hope. Habitat Broward offers a “hand up” not a “hand out” to families who are unable to qualify for conventional home financing but are willing to work hard to improve their family’s lives and achieve the economic empowerment of homeownership. For more information about Habitat for Humanity of Broward please call (954) 945-8031 or visit habitatbroward.org or check us out on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.

Media Contacts
Denyse Peterson, Habitat for Humanity of Broward, 954-396-3030, Denyse@habitatbroward.org
Trena Brae, Bitner Group, (954) 714-7893, trena@bitnergroup.com