The Volunteering Page of Caleb Klahs

Growing up, Louvenia’s family lived in one home her entire childhood. She hopes that by building a home with Habitat for Humanity, she will be able to give her children that same stability she experienced. Louvenia currently lives with her mother – a temporary housing situation for her following the recent birth of her daughter. Previously, Louvenia and her son lived in a private, one-bedroom rental apartment. While she was proud of herself for being able to afford the full rent on her own, the apartment became increasingly more expensive because her landlord billed her for most repairs and upgrades that were made to the apartment. Even so, the apartment still had issues, such as a roach infestation, a backed-up toilet, and faulty windows, and getting in touch with the landlord when things needed fixed proved difficult. The neighborhood also was not the best environment for her children, with lots of loud fighting in the apartment complex. Once she knew she was expecting her daughter, Kassidy, Louvenia applied for homeownership through Habitat so that she could have more room for her growing family and give her children a steady, consistent place to call home.

A Bright Future
Since joining the Habitat partnership, Louvenia has completed classes to prepare her for becoming a first-time homeowner. She said the information she learned in the financial success course, in particular, gave her the tools she needed to make a long-term investment in her home by teaching her about the importance of saving money and helping her create a plan to stay on track with her mortgage payments. When Louvenia thinks about her family’s life in their new Habitat home, she pictures her children playing outside in the backyard on a swing set and hosting family and friends for gatherings. For Louvenia, growing up in one place helped her develop strong relationships with her siblings, and she attributes their loving family bond to their stable home. She said she hopes her Habitat home will keep her kids close, too, and that as they grow up in a house they love, they’ll recognize that, “My mom built this house for me. She did this for us. This is our house.”