Unity 2 Dedication – welcome home Melissa

On Saturday October 28th, Melissa and her three children were welcomed home. For more than a year, volunteers, churches, donors and partner families have worked together to make the Unity 2 home possible. Every Saturday Melissa has been out on the job site working alongside everyone building her own home.

During the dedication ceremony Melissa said, “I am a mother of three, Tyree is almost 12, Damani is almost 13 and Jada is 3. I’ve been a single mom all these years and although I managed to take care of them I knew having a home of our own would make a difference in our lives.” She went on to say, “thank you for the experience of building my own home and most of all thank you for the smiles and laughs. I can’t wait to make new memories in my own home.”

The Unity 2 home was made possible through a collaboration of faith based groups throughout Albuquerque. Representing one of the organizations that has helped finance and build the Unity home was Pastor Tom Hart from the Shepherd of the Valley Church, who gave the home blessing during the dedication, “We have purpose beyond ourselves. I think we are here today not because we have something to give, but because all we find that is given to us. The blessings we find as we share ourselves, as we join in unity with others and find we are part of something much larger and more wonderful than ourselves. This home is a blessing to us and to the community and to this family.”

Melissa has worked for APS, as a clerk at an elementary school for nearly eleven years and so APS Superintendent Reedy attended the dedication ceremony and addressed the crowd saying, “A person like Melissa, who gives so much of herself, deserves to be on the receiving end of generosity and kindness. Thank you for providing that. You chose a good person, a good family, to support.” She went on to say, “Too many of our families are struggling to make ends meet. Too many don’t have a home to call their own. They move from apartment to apartment or crowd into the homes of family or friends. Needless to say that’s hard on the children, who often struggle in school. It’s hard to focus on math and reading when you don’t know where you’ll be living next. We want our students to feel safe and welcome at school, and that often requires partnering with the community to make sure they feel safe at home. That is why I am so thankful to the Greater Albuquerque Habitat for Humanity and all of the other organizations supporting this project. By providing affordable housing for our families, for families like Melissa’s, you are helping us do our job of educating children. And we all benefit from that.”

Habitat believes that everyone deserves a decent place to live, a place to call home, to feel safe and create memories. Welcome home Melissa – we hope this new chapter in your life open doors to more opportunity and a brighter future for your children.