Pedrito and Margarita enjoy gardening together at their new Habitat home.
Margarita always dreamed that one day, her family would have a stable place to call home. But as a single mother of two children (Pedrito and Pamela), money was tight, and the security that a home should bring remained out of reach. Adding to the financial hardships was the fact that her son, Pedrito, lives with cerebral palsy, a developmental disorder that impacts his ability to move and maintain balance.
To make ends meet, Margarita cleaned houses during the week and picked up side work at her church on the weekends. This helped put food on the table and cover rent. However, between Pedrito’s medical expenses and Margarita’s modest income, the family was in a constant state of financial instability—and her dream of homeownership was just that. A dream.
Further complicating matters, the family’s rental house was not designed to accommodate Pedrito’s special needs. This left him with no other options but to pull his body across the floor when moving throughout the house—simply because the hallways were too narrow for his wheelchair. When Margarita’s pastor, Carlos Perez, heard of the family’s living conditions, he was motivated to take action.
Pastor Perez coordinated fundraising efforts within his congregation. The goal was to raise enough money for retrofitting the family’s house. The small congregation of caring folks with modest means did what they could, but in the end, it wasn’t enough. Stressed and running out of options, Pastor Perez remembered hearing about the homes Habitat was building near his community. He encouraged Margarita to apply for the homeownership program provided by Habitat.
In August 2018, Margarita was accepted into Habitat’s program, and her 11-month journey to homeownership began. It was a long process that included sweat equity hours, attending educational courses, and saving $1,700 to cover closing costs. Then on July 10th, 2019, just a few weeks before her children started the new school year, Margarita signed an affordable mortgage to purchase her new home. It was a dream come true. At the home dedication, Pastor Perez blessed the home saying, “Our church prayed for help, and God gave us Habitat.” Recently, Margarita was asked how life has changed with their new home, and she responded, saying, “it’s very different, we are at peace now and feel very secure in our home.”
