A Home for the Holidays for Four Habitat Families

Habitat for Humanity – North Central Georgia held a Dedication Ceremony for four families on Saturday, December 14. The dedication ceremonies took place in two locations. The first ceremony was located in the Villages of Park Creek neighborhood in Woodstock on the border of Cherokee County and Fulton County.  Three homes were dedicated to the Rodriguez-Mora, Njuguna and Shafik families. Over 75 Community members, sponsors, family members and Habitat staff and board members attended the ceremony to celebrate this wonderful moment with the three families. The homes could not have been built without the generous support from the community. Two of the homes were part of an annual ecumenical build where approximately 12 local churches joined together to raise the funds and provide volunteers to build the homes.  The third home was sponsored by local businesses. 

The first home was built in partnership with the Rodriguez-Mora family.  Tina and Victor have two children, Victor Jr. (12) and Victoria (8).  The family has faced many hardships over the years including caring for an ill relative. Tina work’s as a medical assistant and Victor is self-employed. The family is living with Tina’s mother right now and is very excited with the prospect of having their own home where they can raise their children.  Their home is part of the ecumenical build and was sponsored by the following churches; Alpharetta First United Methodist Church, Northminster Presbyterian Church, Roswell Presbyterian Church, Roswell United Methodist Church, Saint Aidan’s Episcopal Church, Saint David’s Episcopal Church, Saint James United Methodist Church, Saint Michael the Archangel Catholic Church, Saint Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church and Zion Missionary Baptist Church.

The second home was built in partnership with the Stephen and Risper Njuguna, who have one son, Brandon (9 months). The family immigrated from Kenya in 2011 in hopes of a better life.  Stephen works at a car dealership in the service department and Risper works part-time at a local thrift store.  The family’s home was sponsored by Mount Pisgah United Methodist Church and Saint Brigid Catholic Church as part of the ecumenical build. 

Habitat partnered with Bahaa Shafik and his wife Sahar on the third home. They are proud parents of two children; Mariam (12) and Androw (10). The family immigrated from Egypt about five years ago so that they could provide a better life for their children.  “Everything has been wonderful except for our current living situation,” stated Mr. Shafik.  “Our apartment is unsafe for the children. The windows leak and the heating doesn’t work. There have also been several burglaries in the apartment complex.”  The family is looking forward to owning their own home. Mr. Shafik has been working at a local supermarket for several years.  The home was sponsored by several businesses including; AutoTrader.com, GEICO, MarineMax, Metlife Volunteer Project Fund, Sawnee Electric Membership Foundation, Schneider Electric Foundation and Employees, and the State Street Foundation.

The fourth home, located on Lyndee Lane in Woodstock, was dedicated to the Palffy family.  This is the first of three homes that will be built on this street by Habitat NCG.  Melanie Palffy was excited about being able to move into her new home just in time for the holidays. There were many tears as she accepted the keys to her home.  At the ceremony she stated that she is “looking forward to having a stable home where my children will never have to switch schools or lose friends again.”

Melanie Palffy has two children, Heaven (11) and Holden (6). She has worked for a local healthcare center in Canton for 5 years as a medical assistant and is also working towards a degree at Chattahoochee Technical College.  Habitat was able to build the home due to the generosity of several community sponsors including: Verizon Wireless, Cherokee Association of Realtors, Windsong Properties, The Eyl Family, AccuAir, Country Carpets, and Complete Roofing Solutions.

Habitat for Humanity – North Central Georgia is a non-profit, Christian housing ministry that builds simple, decent homes for purchase by low income families who demonstrate a capacity for responsible homeownership. Since its inception in 1995, 248 homes have been completed and over 850 family members have been served in North Fulton, Cherokee and Forsyth/Dawson counties. Each family is required to attend 10 educational classes and perform 300 sweat equity hours. Families earn between 25% and 60% of the Atlanta area median income and purchase their homes from Habitat which provides them with a 30-year, no-interest loan.  Family members work side by side with the volunteers, sponsors, and Habitat staff to build their homes. These families not only get to experience the pride of homeownership but they also know that their lives will be changed forever. For more information on Habitat for Humanity – North Central Georgia, please visit www.habitat-ncg.org.