But fate brought them together at a rehabilitation center in Ormond Beach. Deborah needed physical therapy after a fall and Mark had damage to both his feet after a car ran over them on the beach while he was surf fishing.

They've been married for two years and live in a cramped one-room efficiency.

Now, with the help of volunteers from Halifax Habitat for Humanity, they'll be breaking ground on a new house on Saturday.

The home will be the first built using mainly women volunteers. The project is one of more than 80 for the 14th annual Make A Difference Day -- the largest amount of projects ever for Volusia and Flagler counties.

About half of the projects still need volunteers to do everything from planting shrubs to helping agencies repair hurricane damage to homes and buildings. Volunteers are needed to hold food drives for people in need after the storms. People with carpentry skills and electricians also are in great demand.

Make A Difference Day is a national event that draws communities across the country together for a day of volunteering. It is sponsored by USA Weekend, a Sunday magazine carried in The Daytona Beach News-Journal, and the Points of Light Foundation. About 3,000 local youths and adults are expected to participate.

Carol Matusoff, director of the volunteer center for the United Way of Volusia-Flagler Counties, which matches volunteers for the projects, said there is not only an increase over last year's 53 projects, but volunteers are slow in stepping forward.

"We are really in a bind," Matusoff said. "The agencies have been so busy taking care of others, now it's time to take care of the agencies because they, too, were without power and had damage. They are strapped for money."

Matusoff said people may not have money to give, but they can give of their time.

Michael Ross, chairman of the local event and a banking center manager for Bank of America in Daytona Beach, said the projects are a good way for businesses and others to give back what they received when electrical workers and other volunteers came from out-of-town to help during the hurricane.

"I think it's a good time for our community to get together behind a common cause," Ross said.

PACE Center for Girls, a therapeutic educational program for at-risk girls, still needs volunteers to help paint, install wallpaper and repair other damage from the hurricane in their lobby and outreach center. The center also needs new lobby furniture.

"We'd like someone to come in and give it a little bit of love," said Carol Wick, PACE Center executive director.

Some of the girls will be volunteering at the center, while others have adopted a low-income family and will be renovating the childrens' rooms.

Several companies are helping Halifax Habitat for Humanity, including Prosperity Bank and Bright House Networks, though more volunteers are always needed.

The Regesters' house on George Street will be the first "Women Build" home for Halifax and the first fully handicap-accessible home, said Lori Gillooly, the agency's executive director.

Deborah Regester, 56, currently uses a walker and her husband, Mark, 55, walks with a cane, but Regester is getting a wheelchair next week. She has multiple sclerosis.

Despite their disabilities, they will be helping to build their home. Regester will sign in volunteers while her husband will do some of the painting and landscaping.

"Mark has a green thumb. Now we'll have a whole back yard and front yard," Regester said.

After their home is finished in March, they plan to help other Habitat families build their homes.

"Maybe this will give people hope for those who never thought they'd see a house," Regester said.

deborah.circelli@news-jrnl.com

About half of the 80 local projects for Make A Difference Day on Saturday are still in need of volunteer for the event. Here are some in need:

· Act Corp., paint mural on dining/activity room of one of the facilities.

· Catholic Charities, help with food/diaper/personal hygiene product drive.

· Olds Hall Good Samaritan Center, help washing wheelchairs and service carts.

· Family Renew Community, restore brick planters, tear down a cinder block wall and remove piece of a chain link fence.

· Center for the Visually Impaired, build roof for deck, paint railings.

· Halifax Humane Society, build bird roosting cages.

· Mental Health Association on Ridgewood Avenue, install a new roof, paint outside of house, replace and install a new door, refinish wood floors and landscape.

· Mid-Florida Housing Partnership, construct outdoor gazebo for guests.

· "Our" Children First, build shelves in restroom and food pantry.

· Palmetto Park Boys & Girls Club, clean carpets and outside area, rake and spruce up grounds.

· Salvation Army, pressure-clean exterior walls, plant and weed flower beds.

· Serenity House, landscape and repair fence of residential facility in Daytona Beach.

· Farmworkers Association in Pierson, baby items drive, assist with cleanup and home repairs.

· The House Next Door, beautify outside of family counseling center and assemble playground equipment in DeLand, repair or replace canvas awning in Port Orange.

· F.A.I.T.H. Riders, repair roof of 10-stall barn in DeLand, repair fencing and replace posts.

· Serenity House West, enclose screened porch area.

Flagler County projects include:

· ACLU, distribute educational information at service fair at Flagler Palm Coast High School.

· ARC Angels of Flagler, enclose front porch and landscape.

· Diggs Miracle Care of Volusia/Flagler, educate public about HIV/AIDS and the Miracle Care program.

· Flagler Habitat for Humanity, volunteers to help with house construction.

· Hospice of Volusia/Flagler, volunteers to conduct food drive, distribute food, yard cleanup, work on damaged homes.

· Family Life Center, lay bricks, help collect personal care and household items for battered women and children. Items can be taken to the Bunnell Police Department.

· Second Chance Cat Rescue, construct wood feeding box for cats, help with food/supply drive.

· Stewart-Marchman Center -- Flagler, paint outpatient and residential building.

· Volusia/Flagler Turtle Patrol, needs volunteers to distribute information on turtles and nest safety.

For information on volunteering or other projects, call Carol Matusoff at (386) 253-0563, Ext. 230.

Did You Know?

Habitat for Humanity was founded by a millionaire who gave his fortune away at the height of his career:

· By 29, Alabama native Millard Fuller was a self-made millionaire. However, despite his success in business, his health and family life were suffering. He and his wife, Linda, decided to return to their Christian beliefs, sell their possessions and give their money to the poor.

· The Fullers began a ministry of housing in Americus, Ga. Their goal was to help assist low-income families achieve home ownership by having future homeowners participate in the labor of building their own home.

· After testing their housing model in Zaire, Africa, Fuller returned to the United States and created Habitat for Humanity International in 1976.

· Fuller is the author of nine books about his life and work with Habitat for Humanity, and the recipient of numerous awards and honorary degrees.

SOURCE: www.habitat.org

Compiled by News Researcher Karen Duffy