The Catholics 4 Habitat coalition hammered the first nails and raised the first walls on two simultaneous, neighboring home builds on Frasier Street in Marietta. Using lots donated by the City of Marietta earlier this year, the coalition is building its 48th and 49th Habitat homes with Habitat for Humanity of NW Metro Atlanta. The coalition has never missed a year of building in its 31 years of existence.
The two houses will become homes before the holidays for City of Marietta public servants Tracey and Methany.
Tracey has been working for the City of Marietta for almost 20 years and was the first woman employee of the Sanitation Services Division of Public Works. Her hard work and leadership paved the way to her current position of Sanitation Foreperson.
She has strived to buy a home for five years, but even with homebuyer assistance programs, has not been able to qualify for a mortgage large enough to match the rising housing costs. Tracey has a compassionate spirit and exhibits God-given love for others. She excited to have a kitchen where she can bring others together and provide space for her 85-year-old mother.
Tracy says, “I love my job — it has enabled me to use my CDL to help other employees to better provide for their families,” She continues, “It also has shown other women that they can achieve this goal.”
Di’ Ana is a Marietta City Schools bus driver. She says she originally chose this line of work because it provided the perfect schedule to spend quality time with her daughter Saniah, now 15. The family currently lives in an apartment in Marietta.
Di’ Ana says she loves her job. “I love my kids and my students are like my babies, all 100-plus of them! The work environment at Marietta is nothing less than family.”
“I want to become a homeowner because I want to break the cycle of renting and building someone else’s dreams rather than focusing on my dream of providing my daughter with a forever home that we can pass down for generations,” she says.
The 2023 Coalition includes: Holy Family Catholic Church, Catholic Church of St. Ann, St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church, St. Clare of Assisi Catholic Church, St. Joseph Catholic Church and Catholic Church of the Transfiguration.
“At Habitat it takes many partnerships and a lot of teamwork to make homeownership happen,” says Jessica Gill, CEO, Habitat for Humanity of NW Metro Atlanta. “I want to personally thank the City of Marietta for putting the Marietta Public Service Housing Program in place, and Catholics 4 Habitat coalition for raising the money and providing the volunteers to build two houses this fall for these well-deserving public servants.”