19 years later, single mom writes Open Letter to Pres. Carter about her 'Habitat' home

[kpete]

Dear President Carter,

I need to tell you how much my Habitat house means to me...My family (2 sons & 1 daughter) moved into out house Christmas Eve 1997. As a single parent raising children & working 2 jobs, this was a significant milestone in my life. Now, 18 years later, the children are grown, the house has aged, I have aged, and am now 2 years away from paying off my mortgage. During those 18 years, I went back to school and earned my MA (Religion & Culture) in an effort to obtain a better paying job - no such luck.

After 2 decades of Human Services work, I now work 2-3 days a week in a hospital emergency room registering patients. I was forced to begin to collect social security early due to an employment lay-off and termination. My social security check is $840 after my student loan and Medicare deductions. It turns out that working with the differently abled as an attendant, working with low income, first-generation college students, and assisting economically and educationally deprived teens and young adults to earn high school diplomas and learn trades does not fit the ever-shrinking circumstances for eligibility for loan forgiveness. If it were not for my little home, I would be unable to afford to rent an apartment these days. I know that no matter what, I have a home, a place where I can grow old, familiar and comfortable and mine. And you, Mr. President, made this possible. For that, there are no words to describe my thanks.

God bless you, Mr. President

http://www.dailykos.com/stories/2016/1/31/1477991/-19-years-later-single-mom-writes-Open-Letter-to-President-Carter-about-being-a-Habitat-Homeowner