The Volunteering Page of Darien DiPiero

Before You Volunteer: Please scroll down to learn more about what to expect when you volunteer with Habitat. Please also know that Habitat will monitor local and federal health and safety guidelines and implement any applicable restrictions that may be in place on the day you volunteer.

Current Housing • As a single mom, U-londa Hicks knows her kids are watching, so she makes sure she leads by example. That means paying her bills. Getting up in the morning and going to work. Taking care of what she has. The next thing she hopes her children see her doing is building her Habitat home – and then paying off her mortgage. “I didn’t just walk into it and it was given to me,” U-londa said. “I worked my way up, and those are the values that I want my kids to know. This is what it takes to get to where we are today.” In 2018, U-londa and her children were able to move into a three-bedroom house after years of living in public housing. At first, it was exciting to be out of an apartment and in a home with an upstairs and downstairs. But lately, they’ve noticed some troubling activity next door, with people coming and going all the time and lots of noise. The rental house also has some structural problems. It’s not insulated, so the monthly bills are high, and the carpet is hiding holes in the floor. U-londa works for Refuge of Hope in downtown Canton and knew about Habitat for Humanity through her job. But for a while, she wasn’t ready to own her own home yet – she needed to get some things squared away. Now, she’s prepared to move on from renting and work toward something she and her family can call their own.

Palm Family

Current Housing • Courtney Palm will be the first person in her family to own a home. Courtney and her daughters live with Courtney’s mother in an apartment in Louisville. Since Courtney had her baby, Ne’Cari, the home has become overcrowded. Because there aren’t enough bedrooms for everyone, Courtney and Ne’Cari sleep downstairs in a portion of the finished basement. The apartment also has some issues with leaking pipes and mold in the bathroom, and cars frequently get broken into because the parking area for the complex is not near the units. While Courtney loves her mom, she’s excited to finally be out on her own with her daughters and to give them a better place to live. Getting the keys to her own home will provide Courtney with a huge feeling of independence. She won’t have to rely on anyone else to do something for her – she will know she can do it herself. Courtney said she hopes that by watching her, her girls are learning that same independence and developing the same motivation to work hard. When Courtney thinks about what her new home will mean to her, she thinks about her family: “I get to be with my family and spend time with them and just have a place for my kids to grow up and to be happy,” she said.