“Owning a home seemed so distant. I’m a teacher, we don’t make a lot of money. It is very sad to say that I’m doing what I love, I have a college degree, I worked really hard, and I can’t afford a home,” says Cowan. Before moving into her Habitat home, Cowan lived in Sand Springs with her parents. She says, “When I found out that Habitat offers [downpayment assistance], and I qualified for the program, I was so excited! I immediately said, ‘Where do I sign up?’" 

After years of renting, she developed a strong desire to own a home a few years ago. “I wanted stability; a say so in my own life,” she says, “and I wanted something to leave to my kids.” This desire became all the more urgent when her landlord put the house that she was renting on the market. Adriaune looked into traditional mortgage programs, paid off all her debt and even found a few homes that would suit her family, but the financing never worked out. Then one day she saw a video about Tulsa Habitat’s recent 24-Hour Build Home, and she remembered a couple of friends who are Habitat clients. She says Habitat was initially a financial means to an end, but the program has turned out to be so much more. “I appreciate the journey,” she says. “I believe you work and you’re rewarded.” 

These two young refugees from Myanmar are still adjusting to a new life, a new home, a new language, a new culture, a new city, a new country and a new couch. Furniture is a concept that is relatively new to Judith and Joseph. Options were limited in the countryside where they grew up, and life was tough. They were forced to drop out of school and start farming after 8th grade, their homes were sparse, they sat on the floor, and had no running water or electricity and they cooked on an open, indoor fire with little ventilation. 

“The insides of the homes are all black from the smoke,” Judith recalls. “We had to walk miles to get wood. If there was enough wood left over after cooking, we were able to make a fire to stay warm.” 

Diane is no stranger to doing things on her own. She lost her father when she was only four, and her mother died suddenly when she was 14 years old, leaving Diane and her siblings to fend for themselves. When they lost the family home, her siblings all went their separate way, and Diane dropped out of school, ending up on the streets. “School just didn’t seem so important anymore.” says Diane. “I was pushed through to the 10th grade, but I could not read. When you don’t know how to read, you have to learn to make it in other ways.”