Sometimes, drywall is just a little too heavy.

That's when walls of gingerbread come in handy.

Children (of all ages) were invited last Saturday to make and decorate gingerbread houses at Bloomingdale's (at the Shops at Wisconsin Place, in Chevy Chase) as part of a fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity of Montgomery County, MD.

During the afternoon, Bloomingdale's shoppers could take their receipts to the Habitat for Humanity desk set up in the store, and have the store donate 10 percent of the value of their purchases to Habitat for Humanity of Montgomery County, MD.

And while they were at it, they could decorate a gingerbread house donated for the event by Whole Foods Market.

Habitat for Humanity was founded in Georgia in 1976 as a nonprofit organization that builds new homes or rehabilitates old ones for low-income families. The families are chosen through a careful screening process, and families must put in 200 to 500 “sweat equity” hours at the construction site. Families move in with 30-year, interest-free mortgages.

To help the families get their houses built, many volunteers assist at the construction sites by painting walls, cleaning or landscaping, or even by putting up drywall—heavy stuff for which Saturday's gingerbread was a good symbolic substitute.

In Montgomery County, Habitat for Humanity "is currently purchasing and rehabbing vacant, distressed properties," according to the organization's website, and is also heading up a Weatherization Program, offering "free basic weatherization services to increase energy efficiency in the home."

To donate to Habitat for Humanity in Montgomery County, MD, visit www.habitat-mc.org//donate.