"God was walking alongside us." -Jaime Stephenson, 2020 Habitat Homeowner
Jaime was thrilled when his family was selected as Habitat’s 2020 partner and humbled when he learned it would be a Faith Build. After overcoming some hard times, Jaime had found solace at church and believed that his future home was an “answer to a lot of prayers."
As a Faith Build Home, the project was sponsored by Thrivent Financial. Through the program, Habitat partnered with local congregations to build the home, and Thrivent generously matched all donations made by people of Faith.
Jaime’s home was built during the pandemic which meant fewer volunteers able to help, no in-person fundraisers, and having to wear a mask during most of the construction.
None of this deterred Jaime, who focused on getting the work done so his kids could have a permanent place to call home. He especially enjoyed learning new skills as construction progressed. “If I want to add or remove a wall- I know how to do that now. I know I am capable of a lot more types of projects because of this experience”. He said.
Today, the family is settled into their new home, and look forward to their first holiday season under their own roof. The family is still processing the experience, grateful for the stability it's given them.
“The other day, my oldest said “Dad- can you believe two years ago we were renting, and always worried that we’d have to find a new place to live if the rent went up when the lease was up? We don’t have to worry about that anymore!”
Jaime knows how valuable this stability will be for his kids. “This is the house they’ll graduate from, and they’ll come back to visit as adults,” he said. “That stability, is so good for them, it was so much stress having to move so often, not feeling safe to make friends that they’d have to leave. That’s all behind us now”.
Habitat supporters make stories like Jaime's possible. Your generosity gives families the opportunity to build bright futures and is a long-term investment in our community.
This season, consider giving the gift of strength, stability, and self-reliance to families in Cheyenne. With your support, Habitat will help more families find the stories they're thankful for.
Listen Jaime talk about his journey to homeownership in his own words
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