Special Delivery — Postal Worker Receives Keys to New Habitat Home Thursday in The Village

Central Oklahoma Habitat for Humanity will celebrate a special delivery for Cruz M.B. at 3 p.m. Thursday, April 16, when the United States Postal Service vehicle operator celebrates his new home dedication with Habitat staff, local clergy and community members at his house in The Village in Oklahoma City.

Cruz is the third homeowner to purchase one of three new, energy-efficient homes built on land donated to Habitat by Our Lord’s Lutheran Church in The Village. Two Habitat homeowners purchased homes at the location late last year.

Originally, some residents in The Village voiced concerns about potential flooding on the donated land. Stepping in to help, the owners and employees of Johnson & Associates LLC donated more than $43,000 in engineering and project services at no cost to Habitat and funded the construction of a detention pond to support long-term infrastructure needs.

Habitat Chair/CEO Ann Felton Gilliland said Cruz’s new home is the Christian housing ministry’s 1,160th home built since 1990.

“Our beautiful homes in The Village are a testament to the partnership of The Village city leaders and donors like Johnson & Associates LLC and Our Lord’s Lutheran Church,” Felton Gilliland said. “We feel blessed that hard-working homeowners live or will soon live in our new homes in The Village. At Habitat, we know affordable homeownership is one of the most effective long-term strategies for increasing stability, strengthening our workforce and building healthier communities in Central Oklahoma.”

Originally from Puerto Rico, Cruz wrote in his Habitat application that he moved to Oklahoma in 2013 and has been working hard to build his life ever since. He applied to Habitat in hopes of finding a safer, more stable place to live after experiencing safety concerns in his previous neighborhood. He said he has embraced the experience of becoming a Habitat homeowner and is proud to be part of the Habitat family. Now, he said, he looks forward to the stability and peace that comes with having a place to call his own.

“I’m truly grateful for Habitat’s support and help in making my dream of becoming a homeowner come true,” he said.

Like all Habitat homeowners, Cruz qualified for and obtained a mortgage, completed required homeowner education classes, and invested 100 hours of sweat equity building his own and others’ homes.

To learn more, visit www.cohfh.org. To donate, text MAKEHOMEHAPPEN to 50155 or call 405-232-4828.