Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity

For LaWanda Stevenson, 2005 was a year of highs and lows. It was the year she almost lost her faith.

Throughout nine years of marriage, LaWanda and her husband Robert worked hard to build credit and a savings account.  The dream of owning their first home seemed just within grasp, and 2005 seemed to be the year they would achieve that goal.

Then tragedy struck their family threefold. The apartment they lived in with their two children suffered considerable damage by Hurricane Katrina. Shortly thereafter, both of LaWanda’s elderly parents died. The year ended with a layoff from a job LaWanda held for six years.

“Things felt like they couldn’t get much lower,” she said.

While pockets of Mobile County were devastated by Hurricane Katrina, most of the area was left intact. As a result, the county saw a huge influx of displaced residents from harder hits areas along the gulf coast. Property owners took advantage of the supply and demand. Rental prices almost doubled and realty costs skyrocketed. Working families like the Stevensons, now down to one income, saw their hopes and dreams of homeownership all but fade away.

Something told LaWanda to hold on, that there was help on the way. In January 2006, she saw an advertisement for Habitat for Humanity of Mobile County.

“A little light bulb went on, and I said, maybe here’s our chance,” she said. The couple filled out the application, were accepted and have been partnering with Habitat ever since.

The Stevensons will be purchasing one of the eleven homes Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity sent down to Mobile last Spring as part of the Operation Home Delivery program. The homes now form a neighborhood in Bellwood, an area of Mobile County known for its rich history—a close-knit, multi-generational family community. A community the Stevensons are thrilled to soon call home.

It’s hard for LaWanda to talk about her experience with Habitat without crying. “Words can’t begin to express how much this home means to us.”

LaWanda smiles brightly as she stands in the living room of the home that will soon belong to her family. Traces of laughter trickle inside from her 8-year-old daughter Keana and her 3 year-old son, Robert, Jr. who are chasing each other in and out of the flower patch that runs along the front porch.

For LaWanda, this house means a safe place for her kids to play outside, a source of stability for her family, an affordable place to call home. She just wishes that her parents were still here to share in the good news. “My dad always said it was very important to have property, to own your own home,” she said.

Because the responsibility of homeownership means taking charge of repair work, LaWanda is thankful that sweat equity is a requirement of all Habitat homebuyers. She loved working on her home from the very start. “I have learned so many different things. I actually got up on the roof and hammered.”

Her favorite TV stations now are HGTV and the Do-It-Yourself network. “So now if something goes wrong with our home, I think I can pretty much figure out how to fix it myself. I can go to the library now and get books I need [to do the repairs]. It’s been a life changing experience for me.”

Working alongside volunteers from all over the country has also been life changing for LaWanda. She loved learning about their lives and where they came from.

“It’s nice to get to know who’s giving up their time to help someone that’s willing to help even when they don’t know you. It shows a lot about humanity,” said LaWanda. “And it reminded me that there is a God.”