A UConn senior is heading to Africa to build homes for the poor - and she needs your help.

Erica Karlovits, president of the campus chapter of Habitat for Humanity, is in need of a sponsor and tools to bring to Zambia. She will leave for Chisumbu, Zambia, on June 14 and return June 28. Total cost of the trip: $3,000.

Karlovits will help other volunteers build houses of cement blocks, stone foundation and cement tile roofs, providing a sturdy alternative to the traditional local huts made of mud bricks and grass thatch roofs. Permanent houses and improved living conditions in the poor nation will help provide better opportunities for children and families.

Karlovits, who graduates this month, is waiting to find out whether she has been accepted as a one-year volunteer at Habitat for Humanity's international headquarters in Georgia.

Habitat for Humanity relies on volunteers in dozens of nations to build homes for the poor.

To help Karlovits, call her at 486-5910.

TB