‘Grow and thrive’: Family ready to move into 25th Habitat for Humanity house

The blank walls, empty rooms and track-rutted yard define the property in Edinburgh right now.

But in her imagination, Sabrina Hopkins sees the potential.

She envisions her and her sons Zayden, 5, and Jovani, 3, curled on the couch in the living room watching TV together. She can picture her kids in their own rooms, while she cooks dinner in brand new kitchen. In their spacious backyard and the surrounding neighborhood, Zayden and Jovani can run in the grass and ride bikes.

Those dreams aren’t a reality yet, but they will be soon.

“I want them to have their own space, where they can grow and thrive and become themselves outside of each other. They can play outside, and we can have friends and family over,” she said. “There’s that sense of safety and security.”

An army of volunteers from Habitat for Humanity of Johnson County are putting the final touches on the home Hopkins and her family will soon move into. This week marked the end of volunteer work on the house, and while finishing touches and final inspections are still needed, Hopkins is nearing the time to move in.

The house is the 25th build by Habitat for Humanity of Johnson County — a milestone that speaks not only the impact made on families in need of a home, but to the unwavering support the community has provided for their mission.

“To reach this point, it just means that you have so many supporting, amazing people helping you,” said Lee Ann Wilbur, executive director of Habitat for Humanity of Johnson County. “There’s no way we could have done it without our community. To know we have that kind of support and to be able to do this, to affect 25 families in our community is amazing.”

Habitat for Humanity of Johnson County is part of a national nonprofit partnering with area families to provide them with an affordable home. The organization spends about two months building the houses. The new owners receive a 20-year, interest-free mortgage for the house.

New owners are also asked to put down $700 to help cover closing costs. The homeowner is responsible for monthly mortgage payments once the home is finished.

Families also take financial classes and pay “sweat equity” — 300 hours of volunteer labor on their home and other Habitat and community projects. Builds bring together volunteers from local businesses, churches, civic organizations and schools to help physically construct the house.

That network is what has made their success possible, Wilbur said.

“We’ve tried to streamline our processes, we’ve tried to engage more volunteer build days. We’ve engaged more of our restaurants to provide lunch. We promote it more,” she said. “We’ve always been trying to bring on new partners to help us.”

1 of 10

Since forming in 2006, Johnson County’s chapter has helped 24 other families realize their dream of home ownership.

Hopkins was exactly the kind of family the organization aims to help. She, Zayden and Jovani were living in an apartment complex in Franklin. The space was small, and her boys had to share a small bedroom. There wasn’t a yard to play in; the only area available to them was a parking lot.

Instead of being able to host people in their home, they had to travel around the area for holidays, which put a strain on her and her kids.

“A lot of our holidays, we’re just traveling everywhere; it’s not like it’s a relaxing time where everyone can come see the kids since they’re the only grandbabies. We’re here and there and everywhere,” she said.

Hopkins had an acquaintance years ago who was also a single mom with children who went through the Habitat for Humanity process. The opportunities offered to someone in her situation were too appealing to pass up.

“Doing anything in this kind of economy by yourself is hard, so I did a lot of research and did a lot of things, and loved their mission statement and what they stood for,” she said.

Initially, Hopkins applied for the program but was not accepted. Despite being declined, the letter she received was positive, outlining aspects of her financial situation that needed to be worked on but encouraging her to apply again in the future.

So she went to work. She focused on paying off debt she was carrying, taking steps to improve her credit score. After not making it through the program the first time, Hopkins reached out to see what she needed to do to be accepted. She worked to tighten some of her finances, reapplied and was accepted.

“I finally got that call and cried, in the middle of work in front of everybody,” she said. “It’s a lot for me and my boys to have a home and something safe with room for them to grow.”

Taking the steps required by Habitat for Humanity, Hopkins completed service hours, giving her time at the Johnson County Public Library and the Lord’s Cupboard. She completed financial literacy classes, and put in volunteer hours at her own house.

The experience was not only rewarding by allowing her to contribute to her own future home, but she learned a wealth of knowledge about home upkeep she never knew before.

“Her perseverance and resilience have been amazing. She has put in her sweat equity hours. She’s down there every day of the build; even when she can’t stay, she’s greeting the volunteers who are there that morning,” Wilbur said. “She has two little boys, and I think she understood the importance of having a home for her boys to grow up in. She just pushed through. She’s done everything we’ve asked of her, and I think she’s going to be a true success story.”

Her own experience is evidence to others of the benefit of the Habitat for Humanity, Hopkins said. She would encourage other families searching for a home to research the program and see if it’s a fit for them. And if they apply and are denied initially, follow the suggestions and don’t give up.

“Anybody who has gotten that, ‘Sorry, these are the things you need to fix,’ they should do that,” she said.

As the house was nearly completion, Hopkins received a call from her friends at the Lord’s Cupboard. They had received a donation of a stuffed puppy. The dog’s name is Hammer, and he’s wearing a Habitat for Humanity collar.

They thought it would be a perfect early housewarming gift for her kids.

Hopkins sees it as a sign.

“I’ll tell you, Zayden sleeps with that puppy every night,” she said. “I tell him, that’s the house puppy.”

AT A GLANCE

Be a partner family

Habitat for Humanity of Johnson County is looking for partner families to go through the program and purchase one of the organization’s future homes.

Potential partner families must meet three basic requirements:

• Demonstrate a need for housing, as through overcrowded conditions, current housing in need of major unattainable repairs, or unaffordable basic housing costs.
• Willing to partner with Habitat for Humanity, including investing hundreds of hours of sweat equity and attending workshops on home ownership and maintenance.
• Willing and able to make a mortgage payment.

Information: habitatjohnsoncounty.org/homeownership