The first question is simple.
“What are you looking forward to most about your new home?”
“My own room,” one daughter says instantly.
Her sister smiles. She already knows exactly how she’ll decorate hers. It will be clean, organized, and New York-inspired. The younger sister is dreaming of cozy touches, fairy lights, and a projector for movie nights.
Their styles couldn’t be more different, but they’re equally excited for the day they no longer have to share a bedroom.
Their mom, Elane, laughs.
“They fight when they wake up. They fight before they go to sleep.”
The girls don’t even try to argue.
We meet the family in the lobby of Habitat for Humanity Southern Alberta’s office. Elane has come to share her story, but before long, the conversation belongs to her daughters. At 14 and nearly 15, they’re eager to talk about their future home. Fairy lights, a mini projector, a backyard, friends coming over. For the first time, they’re imagining spaces that will truly feel like their own.
Finding space to grow
For years, they’ve made the most of the home they have.
The family lives in a subsidized rental that has given them stability, but as the girls have grown, the space hasn’t grown with them. Three people share one bathroom and the sisters share a bedroom. The kitchen is so small that cooking together quickly becomes crowded. There have also been maintenance challenges over the years, including heating issues that leave one bedroom uncomfortably hot during the winter and repairs that haven’t always happened as quickly as hoped.
“It was good when we were younger,” one daughter says. “But now that we’ve gotten older, it’s getting really cramped.”
For Elane, that’s never been the hardest part.
After immigrating to Canada from Ethiopia nearly 20 years ago, she has spent years building a life for her family. As a single parent, she’s worked two jobs, carefully managed every dollar, and always looked ahead to what comes next.
Buying a home through the traditional market felt impossible.
“You need a down payment. You need a co-signer,” she says. “I don’t have family here.”
Then Habitat changed what was possible.
Changing what’s possible
Later this year, Elane will purchase her first home through Habitat for Humanity Southern Alberta with an affordable, interest-free mortgage and no down payment.
Her daughters are excited about having bedrooms of their own. Elane is excited for something different.
“When they go to university, when they come back,” she says, smiling, “they’ll have a house. They’ll have a home base.”
It’s a simple thought, but one she’s carried for years.
A place where her daughters will always be welcome.
A place that belongs to them.
A place to come home to.
And for another family, Elane’s move into homeownership will mean something important too. The subsidized rental her family is leaving behind will become available for another family that needs affordable housing, creating an opportunity for someone else to take the next step toward stability.
One family moves forward and another family gets the chance to begin.
