Building homes and changing lives in Northwest Vermont.

Owning our own home will make a big difference to the safety of our family. And we are so excited about having the responsibility to maintain and meet certain standards with our new home during our lifetime. We will also save money for our children. I will be happy to pay our mortgage for 30 years!

I am enjoying working on our new home with the volunteers and every day our son asks ‘when are we going to move into our new home?’ For us, the long wait, from the refugee camp almost 30 years ago, to helping to build our new home, is worth it.

Working in the financial industry, I've seen what a struggle it is for some people to qualify for adequate housing for their families, something that many of us take for granted. I was aware of Habitat for Humanity International and when I learned that Green Mountain Habitat for Humanity builds homes right here in Vermont, I was excited to be a part of the mission. As a life-long Vermonter, giving back to the community that has helped me prosper is a priority, and Green Mountain Habitat has given me the opportunity to do just that. There's nothing like being on the Board and seeing the appreciation from local families when they get settled into their Habitat homes.

The kids and I anxiously awaited the decision and when I was told that we would become a Habitat homeowner, I burst into tears. We are so grateful for this opportunity to leave very unsafe conditions and move into our own affordable and energy-efficient home.

I’m so very proud of my parents, who had good jobs in Bosnia, then lost everything to escape the war. They paid off their mortgage on their Habitat built home and still live in the home in Burlington. Because of the “hand up” my family received, I feel a deep need to give back. When people meet me they don’t think of me as a refugee, but being a refugee has made me who I am today.

We have hope, now, about the wellbeing of our family. Owning our own home will mean the opportunity to climb out of poverty, to have equity, to have a base to spring forward from and a haven to return to, for years and generations to come.