(Campus Monitor Receives Home Through HFH)
By Aubrey Medina & Rihana Medrano-Thompson
Campus Monitor Ms. Crystal Alvarado and her two sons moved into their new home during the holiday season, courtesy of Habitat for Humanity.
Alvarado, who joined Pueblo’s security team last February, remained patient throughout the long process of qualifying for a new home.
“Once I was accepted [just nine out of 300 applicants], I actually worked 250 hours with the construction of the home,” Alvarado said. “My sons [Jacob and Estevan—a sophomore at Pueblo] weren’t eligible to help because they’re both younger than 16. They weren’t even allowed on the construction site.”
After all the sweat and body aches, Alvarado said the effort was “beyond worthwhile”.
“I have a home near Sentinel Peak [‘A’ Mountain] with a gorgeous view of the city,” she said. “Christmas this year was a little different—as we were moving and settling in.”
Alvarado finished her application to the Habitat for Humanity program a year ago, and “graduated” in July 2023 after meeting numerous qualifications. She found time on weekends and weekday evenings to meet the mandatory 250 hours of labor.
“There were a lot of times I just wanted to give up,” Alvarado said. “I didn’t, though. Working on the construction of my own home ended up being an accomplishment I’ll never regret.”
One of the many benefits of being a HFH recipient is not paying interest on a mortgage payment, saving the family tens of thousands of dollars over the life of the mortgage.
The Alvarado’s said they plan to start off “fresh”—no old furniture, dishes, and other household items.
“We are starting off with just our clothes, a few television sets and my sons’ game consoles,” Alvarado said.
[Habitat for Humanity, founded in 1976 by married couple Millard and Linda Fuller, is a partnership, not a giveaway program. Habitat’s homeowner families buy the houses that Habitat builds and renovates. Habitat homeowners also invest hundreds of hours of their own labor working alongside volunteers. As a result, Habitat for Humanity houses are affordable to low-income families around the world. The organization operates with financial support from national governments, philanthropic foundations, corporations and mass media companies. foundations.
Habitat directly helps more than four million people each year secure decent, affordable housing, and an additional eight million people now have the potential to improve their housing conditions through a range of indirect services. Our annual report provides full details.
Habitat for Humanity continues to build and renovate decent, affordable housing in all 50 U.S. states and more than 70 other countries.]