Ricardo & Ana Andrea’s Fresh Start

The process of applying for a Habitat home can seem daunting to some families. However, one moment can make the waiting feel worth it. When Ricardo and Ana Andrea received the call telling them they had been offered a lot for their future home, they got in the car and drove to see the place where their home would be. 

They were finally standing on the green grass where their children would grow up and play. The place where the concrete would be poured and where, someday, they would host family and friends. 

This was the moment when their future became real. 

For Ricardo and Ana Andrea, Habitat was something they first encountered through people closest to them. Ricardo’s coworkers introduced him to the program, and many of his coworkers were already Habitat homeowners. 

Ricardo and Ana Andrea saw Habitat as an opportunity to give their family a safer place to live. Currently, their family is renting an apartment, but time and time again, they have had to move due to issues with mold, cigarette smoke, and pests. Their children experienced more frequent allergies and infections, and the family realized their housing wasn’t meeting their needs. 

“It’s cheap, but it’s not worth it,” Ana Andrea said. “At least in your house, it’s going to be a clean and safe place.” 

Because they have moved frequently, Ricardo and Ana Andrea have never felt comfortable investing in new furniture. They didn’t know how long they would stay in one place or whether their belongings would fit in their next home. Now, they see their Habitat home as an opportunity for a fresh start. 

“When we get to our Habitat home, we’re trying to switch some things out, get rid of all the visual clutter, and have a new start,” Ricardo said. 

One of the first things they’re looking forward to purchasing is a new couch for their living room.

The home isn’t just changing Ricardo and Ana Andrea’s lives; it’s shaping their children’s future, too. 

Habitat’s homeownership education extends to the whole family, giving children an opportunity to learn alongside their parents and understand what it means to care for and maintain a home. At first, their five-year-old daughter, Fernanda, didn’t want to attend Habitat meetings. Now, she wants to go because she knows she’s participating in preparing for their new home. 

Fernanda looks forward to having her own bedroom and choosing its color—something she hasn’t been able to experience while living in apartments. 

For Ricardo and Ana Andrea, their future home is also about the community they’re joining in Osage Place. Through Habitat classes, meetings, and volunteer hours, they’ve had opportunities to meet other future homeowners and get to know the people who will become their neighbors. 

As they’ve continued through the program, they’ve realized that other families share many of the same hopes: to feel safe, comfortable, and secure in their homes. 

“The good part of this is that you get to meet them,” Ricardo said. “You get to know how they are instead of just moving somewhere and not knowing who they are.” 

“At the end, you’re going to live with them too—not just you and your family in your house, but everybody in your community.” 

Ricardo didn’t know anything about construction before joining Habitat. Now, he’s learning alongside other future homeowners, neighbors, and volunteers how his house is being built and why things are done in certain ways. 

A common misconception about Habitat for Humanity is that families receive free houses. While Habitat does build homes, homeownership is about much more than receiving a set of keys. Future homeowners invest their own time through sweat equity, participate in homeownership education, and gain the knowledge, skills, and confidence they need to become successful homeowners—both before and after they close on their affordable mortgage. 

For Ricardo, being part of the construction process has made the home feel even more meaningful. 

“It makes you feel like you’re doing it,” he said. “You’re not doing it by yourself, but at least you’re doing something for the home you’re going to live in. It makes you feel proud.” 

For Ricardo and Ana Andrea, a Habitat home means a safe place for their children to play and a stable place for them to grow up. It is a place where Fernanda can make a room of her own. It is a place where they can get to know their neighbors and become part of a community. 

And, after years of moving from one place to another, it is a place they can finally be proud to call home.