Habitat Ocala building homes, building hope, building community

On Thursday, Habitat for Humanity celebrated a house blessing for one of our very special family partners, Carey Hamilton and his two children. Festivities began at 9 a.m. at the home located at 15 Pine Course Place in Ocala.

Habitat officials passed the keys to the Hamilton family and witnessed them opening the door to their home for the first time. Also, everyone present put a hand on the home as they said a blessing for Hamilton and his family.

“This is the reason why we do what we do here at Habitat and is the purpose of our mission of everyone being able to afford their own home,” said Tyler Starr, a Habitat spokesperson. “We understand what owning a home can mean for these families. We want to give our family partners a chance at a better life and we will continue to work toward a community where everyone has a decent place to live, and where measurable improvements in health, education, security and wealth generation are enjoyed by more and more homeowners.  The benefits of decent and affordable homeownership are indisputable, and it’s truly gratifying to help these families have a place to call home.”

This home has been a long time coming for Hamilton and his family. He’s had to endure a lot of personal hardship while going through this journey. But for him to go through everything and come out with this home really means everything. Hamilton has been a huge blessing to have in the Habitat program, Starr said.

“He’s a very quiet and laid-back guy, but is a hard worker and great listener, and we’ve loved having him in our program. We hope this home serves him and his family well for years to come and provides them the safety and stability they need. “

To celebrate the House Blessing’s, Dave Layman, president and CEO of Habitat for Humanity, along with the organization’s sponsors and dignitaries, stood  side by side to pass the door key to the family, completing their final step of their long-awaited journey to homeownership.

This home was funded by Marion County Community Services, Well Fargo, & Self-Help Homeownership Opportunity Program (SHOP), so we want to extend our thanks for their support and helping us make the dream of homeownership a reality for this family.