Donna Morafcik, 38, the communications director for the Building Industry Association, believes information can sometimes be a tool as powerful as hammers and nails. She proved that after firestorms destroyed thousands of San Diego County homes last year when she led her organization’s effort to help victims recover.

She quickly partnered with home-building experts and created a booklet, “When You are Ready to Rebuild,” providing a wealth of information on how to get through the government labyrinth of building codes and the permit process. She distributed nearly 4,000 of the booklets to people who lost property in the wildfires.

“It was something desperately needed,” she says, “and there was nothing like it.” She also mobilized “Builders Helping Neighbors,” a project that raised $160,000 to provide tools for fire victims, who received individual assistance checks.

Her disaster work went beyond her normal public relations duties, which have won her numerous awards. An SDSU journalism graduate, Morafcik runs the BIA Web site and edits the BIA’s monthly 64-page Builder magazine, named best trade publication by the San Diego Press Club last year. She manages an education campaign for 165,000 industry employees, writes speeches and handles media relations on public policy matters.

Before joining the nonprofit BIA seven years ago, Morafcik worked in both the private and public sectors. In the early 1990s, she operated her own business, Communication Concepts, and later worked as communications director to Supervisor Ron Roberts. Despite her packed schedule, she finds time for her favorite outdoor activities, sailing and beach volleyball. She is also proficient in Spanish and Italian, which she studied with her mother, Darlene Pradarelli.

— Lynne Carrier