Sunday event to dedicate homes for the Robles and Villard families
VANCOUVER — Evergreen Habitat for Humanity will dedicate the homes for the Robles and Villard families. Leticia Robles and Paulie Villard look forward to the stability and safety of home ownership.
The home dedication ceremony will be held Sun., March 10 at 2 p.m. at 1110 SE 77th Ct., Vancouver.
Villard home
Paulie Villard is no stranger to moving. As a child, her family traveled the United States and the world while her parents taught at different schools. Now, as a single mom of Licia (8), Paulie works to give her daughter a permanent home to call their own. When Licia was only 5 years old, Paulie made the decision to leave the harmful relationship she was in with Licia’s father. With help from her sister and neighbors, she was able to start over.
“After 12 years of a harmful marriage I am starting a new life, working hard to build a happy safe home for my daughter and give her every opportunity,” says Paulie.
Robles home
Leticia Robles’ journey to homeownership has been one of true strength and grit. In 1992, Leticia immigrated to the United States without any close friends or family.
“I was just 21 years old.” Leticia recalls. “I did not know any English, and I did not have my family near me. Things were very hard at that time.”
With great fortitude, Leticia quickly began to build a new life in the United States. She married and had four children, a son and three daughters. After 11 years of marriage, however, divorce left her with nowhere to live with 4 young children. The family stayed in a shelter for a few months, until Leticia was able to land back on her feet with a job and a small apartment. Since her days in a shelter, Leticia has continued to work hard to provide the best life possible for her children. She became a permanent resident in 2016 but as a single mother she has always struggled to find decent housing.
Her family has years of unfortunate experiences dealing with substandard rental units which they could barely afford. Their new home finally means they have a place of their own that will stay affordable and safe for the family.
The Robles home was made possible thanks to generous sponsors in the Faith Build. Nineteen faith communities have contributed to making Leticia’s and her daughter’s dreams come true.
These homes also couldn’t have been built without the tireless dedication of Evergreen Habitat for Humanity volunteers. They had 569 volunteers contribute 9,052 hours in total to both homes.
Since 1991, Evergreen Habitat for Humanity has worked to improve living conditions for low-income Clark County residents. People in the community, and all over the world, partner with Habitat for Humanity to build or improve a place they can call home. Habitat homeowners achieve the strength, stability, and independence they need to build a better life for themselves and their families.
For additional information, contact Josh Townsley, executive director, Evergreen Habitat for Humanity, at (360) 737-1759.
Information provided by Evergreen Habitat for Humanity.
