Have you ever thought that, instead of a family building a house, a house can build a family; a neighborhood; a community?
Last winter, Ed and Tiena were living in a poorly maintained Bridgeport apartment with their three girls, Michelle, age 7, Jalana, age 5, and Jayne, age 4, trying to keep warm despite drafty windows and poor insulation. The extreme cold took its toll when the family was forced to live without heat because the cost of oil was too expensive for their modest income. Ed, a security guard, and Tiena, a home health care provider, did their best to keep the girls warm by bundling them in blankets and putting them to sleep in the same bed.
A year later and thanks to your support of Habitat for Humanity of Coastal Fairfield County’s (Habitat CFC) work, Ed and Tiena are looking forward to a warm winter in their new Habitat home on Bunnell Street in Bridgeport. The family moved into their new home this past spring and they are now thriving.
Low-Income, Working Families Need Your Help
Ed and Tiena’s home is one of seven Habitat CFC homes on Bunnell Street in Bridgeport’s East Side – an area targeted by the city for revitalization. The East Side has long been marred by crime and poverty, but thanks to a committed partnership among the City of Bridgeport, Habitat CFC and other social service agencies, neighborhoods are being revived into safe, family oriented communities. Some of Ed & Tiena’s neighbors include Liz, who works at Habitat CFC’s Operations Center, and Mattie, who works as a child care provider. All of these families have jobs that are vital to a healthy, functioning community. They provide the essential services that make our quality of life better. But because of their low income and the extreme cost of housing in Fairfield County, they have been forced to live in conditions that were often over-crowded, infested with rodents or insects, or had faulty electrical and/or plumbing.
Now, with your support of Habitat CFC’s work, carefully screened, low-income families can have the opportunity to be responsible, first time homeowners. The families purchase a newly constructed home and repay a 25-30 year, 0% interest mortgage held by Habitat CFC. They perform 500 hours of ‘sweat equity,’ which is volunteer time spent building their own home as well as the homes of other Habitat families. They also attend homebuyer preparation workshops that empower them with the tools necessary to manage this new opportunity wisely.
Responsible Homeownership Pays
Moving into safe, healthy, and affordable housing breaks the cycle of poverty for a family, impacting all of its future generations. Habitat families typically save several hundred dollars per month on housing expenses when they purchase their Habitat home.
These savings are used to provide adequate food, heat and clothing for their families. Children of homeowners are healthier, do 23% better in school and are 25% more likely to graduate from high school and college. Their prospects for the future are much improved.
The community benefits as well. Properties like the one the Ed and Tiena’s home was built on, which was abandoned and blighted, are transformed into safe and healthy homes. The families invest in the quality of their neighborhood by maintaining their properties, reporting crime, and joining in community groups. As renters, impoverished by the high costs of housing, they may have presented a drain on municipal services. As homeowners of affordable housing, they become tax payers and contributors to our shared community.
Your Investment Helps Build Strong Communities
Supporters like you help Habitat CFC make a meaningful, tangible impact on families like Ed and Tiena’s throughout Coastal Fairfield County. The return on this investment has been great. In Bridgeport and Stratford, where we have already built 155 homes, our Habitat families are thriving. Habitat neighborhood crime rates are lower, and our
homeowners are paying more than $500,000 each year in property taxes. But there are still many families and neighborhoods in need of our help. Please consider supporting the work of Habitat CFC this holiday season and help us continue building stronger families and safer, healthier communities. Donations can be made BY CLICKING HERE
Wishing you and your family a joyful holiday season and a warm, safe home for the holidays.
Very truly yours,
Bruce Berzin Keith Cook
Co-President Co-President
P.S. Won’t you please take a moment right now to help struggling, low-income families become responsible homeowners? Please make a tax-deductible contribution today.
