Shirley Passes Her Knowledge on to New Homeowners

A lot changes over 18 years. People come and go, leaders rise and fall from power, and the economy booms and busts. For Shirley Robinson, her Habitat home has been a constant throughout that entire time.

Shirley first applied to become a Habitat homeowner back in 1995. Earlier this week, she spoke at a class for the newest generation of Habitat homeowners, sharing her Habitat story and giving them advice on how to truly succeed in their new home.

Shirley’s life before moving into her Habitat Home stands in stark juxtaposition to her life after. It was while she was staying in a women’s shelter with her three kids that she first heard about Habitat. What appealed to her was the safety and stability that a home would bring. Buying her house over renting an apartment was important, since rent was almost double her current mortgage payments.

“If it wasn’t for my Habitat Home, I would have run into substantial financial problems” Shirley explains.

Another important part of Habitat’s mission that stuck with Shirley is the “Theology of the Hammer," as Habitat founder Millard Fuller put it. This is the idea of building decent homes with all of God’s children in mind—with a mortgage that's affordable. And Shirley passes on these ideals in her daily life as well. Just recently, she walked by a Habitat build site and decided to thank the volunteers by providing them with drinks and snacks; a small gesture that shows the appreciation she felt for the volunteers that helped build her house, and gave her a place to call home.

Perhaps that is the most important part of Shirley’s experience, finally having a place to call home. For the past 15 years, Shirley’s three children, Kjersta, Brennan, and Addison have had the opportunity to grow up in the same house and live in a stable neighborhood. They even welcomed a new member to their family, Shirley’s son Kaleb. And although getting children to do yard-work has never been easy, her kids are “grateful to be able to do it.”

So what did Shirley share with the new homeowners? Just the lessons that helped her succeed. When she sees something that needs fixing around the house, Shirley thinks back to before she became a homeowner:

 “I think of when my house was just a hole in the ground waiting to be built, and when I made the decision to be a homeowner. I knew that this was my responsibility."

The confidence that she has the ability to take care of her own house was the most important thing Shirley learned while she was taking part in Habitat homeowner trainings.

“It made me feel confident in my own abilities”, Shirley clarifies.

It’s that optimism she hopes to share with all future Habitat homeowners.

Want to learn more about the homeownership process?