Abigail McCain has been waiting a long time to become a homeowner. And the Sulphur/Carlyss native is within days of finally moving into her own home in Westlake, with help from Habitat for Humanity.
“This is the first home that I or my husband has ever owned,” she stated, “I’m very excited and can’t wait to move in.”
Abigail, and her husband Lawrence, applied for a home through the local Habitat affiliate in Lake Charles about two years ago. The couple attended required meetings, completed everything they were instructed to do, and performed the required 350 hours of ‘sweat equity’ (physically volunteering at a place of need). Lawrence put his hours in at the Westlake home, while Abigail not only worked at their home, but also volunteered at Care/Help in Sulphur and at another Habitat build in Lake Charles. Brian Kingsnorth, Habitat’s Superintendent on Site, praised the couple for their hard work and for Abigail’s constant presence at the Westlake house.
“She is here every day. The both of them have put in so much more than the 350 hours required,” said Kingsnorth.
“We appreciate any effort people put in the houses,” he continued.
And assisting the couple and Kingsnorth with the building of the 1,200 square feet, three bedroom, one and half bath home were volunteers from the community and from Americorps. Two separate Americorps groups, with just less than a dozen people in each group, worked on the home, each staying in the area about six to eight weeks. Americorps NCCC ‘Wolf 7’from Perry Point, Maryland, led by Jamie Rogers, was the group finishing off the project; the previous group was one from California. Andrea Groner, spokesperson for the Maryland group, spoke on Americorps aim in coming into communities outside of one’s particular base of operations.
“Our main goal is to get young people to volunteer. We reach out to the youth of an area and get as many people involved,” said Groner.
The group will move on to other Habitat projects after completion of the Westlake home, including one in DeRidder. Until then, the group has been working hard painting and on various other end-of-project installations and cleanup. But the home is quite impressive now. The rooms are spacious, with ceiling fans throughout, central air and heat, and the kitchen comes complete with stove, refrigerator and a washer and dryer. The McCains have chosen all gas appliances. As well, the couple picked out the ceiling fans, countertops, the bathroom flooring, and the colors of the flooring in the remainder of the house.
Funds for the property purchase and building of the home came through donations from citizens of Qatar, who created a Qatar Katrina Fund for Louisiana. These particular funds are not only responsible for the building of the Westlake home, but for four other builds in the Lake Charles area. And according to Kingsnorth, the home will have a 25 year mortgage at zero percent interest with a small down payment required. He also stated that a home this size would probably range from between $300 to $350 a month in payments.
But aside from the financial aspect, there is also the pride and feeling of accomplishment in homeownership. For all that, the McCains feel that the two year wait has been worth it. Abigail said their wait is not typical, but she was firmly resolved to staying in the Sulphur/Westlake area that she grew up in, so the couple waited until Habitat decided to build somewhere in that area.
“I love it very much, both the house and the area,” said Abigail.
And soon they will be officially homeowners when the keys are turned over into their hands.
“It is so rewarding to see homeowners receive the keys to their new home,” said Kingsnorth. “When you complete the project and hand over the keys, you know you are affecting someone’s life.”
For more information about the Southwest Louisiana’s Habitat for Humanity affiliate and how to apply for a home, contact them at (337) 497-0129 or visit Habitat’s website, HYPERLINK "http://www.habitat.org" www.habitat.org, for more information about the organization.
