Haley is the dedicated and hard-working mother of two young boys, Day-Drian and Kahil. She is a supervisor at the Family and Social Services Administration and has been there almost three years. She has a passion for teaching young children and would love to go back to teaching preschool at some point. She loves being in a job that involves helping others.

While growing up, Haley moved frequently. She moved out on her own at age fourteen and got her own apartment at age eighteen. Currently, she and her two sons rent an older house, where both the rent and the utility bills are high and continuously rising. The basement floods constantly, which presents a problem with mold, especially for her son with allergies. She looks forward to having a stable, energy efficient home. Haley will be the first in her family to own her own home. She says, “For my kids to be able to look back one day and say ‘that is my childhood home’ will mean everything to me.”

Haley’s mother encouraged her to apply for the Habitat program, but she was hesitant at first. As she researched the program further, she learned about the support that prospective homeowners receive through the classes, especially in financial planning. She had not realized how much Habitat helps people prepare for the rest of their lives – beyond home ownership.

“Getting all my sweat equity hours in was extremely hard at first,” Haley says. However, through the process she discovered that she could do much more than she ever thought she could. She feels that her life is more productive now because she is learning to put her time and energy into things that matter. She has also been surprised and gratified by the bonds and the friendships she has formed with the other Habitat homeowners.

Haley and her sons are looking forward to having a home that is theirs. The boys enjoy spending time together, but they are looking forward to having their own rooms for the first time. The family is so grateful to their sponsor and to the volunteers working on their home. She says, “They are really changing lives!” When she is finished with the program and moves into her home, she wants to continue volunteering and donating hours to others in the program. She recently had someone do that for her, and she wants to pay it forward.