Like so many people this year, Zaida and her children were forced to move after a huge spike in rent. How can a single mom who works night shifts afford a 66% rent increase in just one year? It was impossible.
Zaida and her children overcame many obstacles, but the past few years were rough on them.
She decided to move her family in with her brother, whose home consisted of 14 people and only 2 bathrooms. Everyone felt cramped. Zaida knew there must be a better and safer way of living and dreamed of providing her kids with a home of their own. After hearing about Habitat from Women Build Homeowner, Adriana, she decided to apply to the homebuyer program.
Zaida was anxious about being accepted. She had applied the year before but wasn’t selected.
When she got the phone call, she says,
“I was speechless. I couldn’t believe it. It felt really good that we got selected. It’s like a dream. It was the dream that we needed. We needed a house.”
Luckily, her sons Divino and Noe feel a strong sense of responsibility and togetherness. They constantly offer to take care of their younger sister, to pick her up from school and drop her off. Divino isn’t required to participate in sweat equity, but he helps out at the build site anyway. Divino and Noe support their mom because they know that their mom gives them everything she can. Family is everything to the boys.
What does home mean to Zaida? She says,
“Home means everything to me. To be honest, home means a lot to me because of my kids. I always wanted to buy a home for them. I feel like they’re going to be safer there. They’re going to be able to focus more on their education more than focusing on just where they’re going to sleep at night.”
