From living in her car to becoming a homeowner in Apopka: Congratulations Toneisha!

By Penny Seater, CEO, Habitat for Humanity Seminole - Apopka

About two weeks ago, Toneisha shared her emotional journey with us. From living out of her car to becoming a homeowner, she let us know that volunteers and supporters, like YOU, have changed her life forever.

Toneisha celebrating her completion of our homebuyer education program.

Toneisha is so grateful to be able to share her blessings with others. She now comes home to a kitchen with fully functional appliances that she is able to make and enjoy home-cooked meals with, instead of a microwaved meal in a hotel room or a drive-through meal in her car. All she used to look forward to were meals at a neighbor's home, after church on Sundays but tonight, she gets to cook her own spaghetti dinner to share with her little brother. Together they will sit at the kitchen table she built, celebrate his new job, and her new promotion at work.

She's also excited about her new bathtub because, in the past, she​ could only shower due to worries about the condition of previous tubs, and now, it's something she looks forward to after long days.

Toneisha has purchased her first home and joined a community and, just the other day, was able to help her neighbor by jumping her car. "It may be a little thing," but she, "feels so lucky," that she is able to be a support system for another Habitat homeowner.

"I am so grateful to not have to sit in the parking lot of my car after work and wonder where I am going to go next." Now Toneisha knows where she is going, as she has the key to her forever home. For Toneisha, that key represents home-cooked meals with her brother, evenings soaking in a clean bathtub, and time spent giving back to her community.

Without people like you, we could not serve families like Toneisha.

She is now able to shelter in place, safely, and with ten more families in our pipeline, now more than ever, we need to provide them with the assurance that Toneisha now has.

With the current challenges we are all facing during these unprecedented times, we've decided to participate with nonprofits all across the United States for Giving Tuesday on May 5th.

Our goal, this year, is to put a roof on one of our homebuyer's forever homes and we are asking for your continued support in our mission of building homes, community, and hope during these unprecedented times.

As always, stay safe, and thank you for everything you do.