Homeowner Stories

Mankato Partnering Families

The families listed below represent 2 of the 4 families HFHSCMN is currently building for in Mankato on Rogers Street.

Michelle and Jason

After living in their trailer for nearly seven years, Michelle and Jason will soon be living a dream come true.  As one of Habitat for Humanity of South Central Minnesota’s named partner families, accepted June 1, a home dedication for the two and their four children will be taking place early this coming spring. 

Reoccurring mold has impacted the family especially their young twin girls, Rachel and Nicole, 5, have been diagnosed with asthma.  Three years ago, Michelle’s kids were getting sick all the time.  “God was telling me it was time to get my butt in gear,” she says.

When Michelle first came into the Habitat office, however, she had some other hurdles to overcome before we were able to partner with her in providing a better home for her family.  Michelle and Jason had bad credit so the first task was rebuilding that.  Their poor credit was preventing them from moving.  Habitat has also worked with the family in creating budgeting plans as well as other methods of preparing the couple for first time home ownership. 

Michelle and Jason were instantly placed at the top of the priority list.  Michelle is ecstatic about the opportunity her family has been blessed with.  Through teary eyes, she recognizes the “opportunity she has been given for change and to bettering the life of her family.  The stress of affording shoes for my children has been lifted”.

Kuany Family

Native of Sudan, Nyanchiew (Nán-chú) Kuany and her family moved to Mankato in 2008 in search of a better place to live for their family and more specifically for their disabled son. First arriving in Mankato, Kuany and her family found it difficult to find affordable housing. They were able to move into transitional housing that was limited to two years

In January of 2009, Kuany suddenly found herself a single parent providing for her five children. A tragic car accident left her a widow after her husband was killed in the accident. Her son was also in the car and was severely injured. Kuany started working in the summer of 2009. She found it difficult to feel comfortable leaving her children at home while she was at work. She would often work overnights to provide for her family.

After a year of residing in Mankato, Kuany heard of the opportunity from friends at her church of what a Habitat home could provide. Because of the rumors about Habitat and the difficult application process, she was hesitant about applying. Kuany soon found out that Habitat makes it easy to apply for a home.

“You know your friends will tell you about good things, because they love you and want the best for you,” said Kuany.

In the beginning stages of construction, Kuany was very apprehensive about being involved in assisting with the manual labor. Now, she is comfortable enough to be on the roof hammering on her own shingles. She has volunteered numerous hours on Habitat related activities such as putting in 50 hours of work at the Restore and helping organize a potluck. Nyanchiew also made a traditional Sudanese dish to share with the Care-a-Vanners during their stay in Mankato.

With all of the constant moving from place to place and changing schools numerous times, the children will soon have a sense of security in their new home.  Kuany expresses that she will feel comfortable leaving her family when needed and not having to be concerned with their safety.

The family’s home is currently still under construction. The interior will be worked on over the winter months. The move-in date for Kuany and her family is set for spring 2012.

It was because of Kuany’s determination to keep moving forward that she is in the process of helping build her home. The Kuany children are thankful for Habitat and will be able to have a place to play and call home. “I got my dream because I have Habitat,” said Nyanchiew.