Cedar Falls Family Moves into Their New Habitat for Humanity Home

Press release from Iowa Heartland Habitat for Humanity:

Iowa Heartland Habitat for Humanity (IHHFH) has dedicated a newly completed home at 922 Douglas Street, Cedar Falls. The family moving into the home has completed their sweat equity hours and transformed them into their own home.

Amanda Lawrence is employed by Harmony House in Waterloo. She and her son will move into this home right away. She had lived in a trailer that she owned, but will get more equity out of owning a home. She also has enjoyed the journey to home ownership.

“I had a great learning experience working on my hours plus to meet the volunteers. Habitat has given me a great sense of worthiness in life," she said. "I’m so excited and relieved to move in and to be a homeowner. I think it will bring a brighter future for my son to grow up in a stable and new, comfortable environment.”

“Habitat for Humanity isn’t about emergency help” says Lindsay Pieters, Development Director for Iowa Heartland Habitat for Humanity. “It’s about helping families that don’t qualify for a conventional mortgage. The process to home ownership takes about a year. It’s not dire, dramatic situations. It’s providing an affordable solution. Habitat is about hard working people that deserve to own their own home, be engaged in the community, provide stability for their children and a sense of dignity for themselves.”

This home on Douglas Street is the first rehab project for over a year. Habitat will renovate homes as well as build new construction. Other projects IHHFH are working are 1515 Mitchell Ave., (rehab), 211 Independence Ave., Waterloo (rehab), 1625 Wakonda Drive, Waterloo (new construction), 700 Upton Ave., Waterloo (rehab) and 100 Freedom Lane, Waterloo (new construction).

This dedication makes the 114th completed home for Iowa Heartland Habitat for Humanity. IHHFH has served 115 families; 1166 adults and 475+ children in Habitat homes.

About Iowa Heartland Habitat for Humanity

Iowa Heartland Habitat for Humanity was founded in 1990 as an affiliate of Habitat for Humanity International and is a nonprofit organization seeking to eliminate poverty housing, build stronger families and improve neighborhoods.  IHHFH currently builds in three Iowa counties – Black Hawk, Bremer and Butler.

Habitat invites people from all walks of life to work together in partnership to help build homes with families in need of better housing.  Locally, Iowa Heartland Habitat completes 10-12 homes annually.  Houses are built with volunteer labor, homeowner Sweat Equity hours and tax-deductible donations of money and materials. 

The Habitat houses are then sold to Habitat families with affordable ZERO interest mortgages. These mortgage proceeds are then used by the Habitat affiliate to build more affordable homes with more qualified families. Visit www.heartlandhfh.org. 

Iowa Heartland Habitat for Humanity celebrated the completion of its 100^th home in August, 2011; while Habitat affiliates of Iowa will celebrate the completion of 1000 homes state wide on October 1.