TAMPA, Fla. — So much excitement, and it’s still just an empty lot.
“We are so excited. What a blessing. Our future home here, guys. Right here,” said Teresa Davila.
In a matter of months, Davila and her nine grandkids will have a new home through Habitat for Humanity.
“They are the reason for all of this. They are my reason for wanting to do better,” she said.
Teresa and the kids are squeezed into a three-bedroom home right now.
She works full time, but rent continues to go up along with the price of so many things.
“The way times are going. It’s scary. It’s scary,” she said.
Habitat for Humanity of Hillsborough County found out about this family when during a Tampa Housing after-school program two years ago.
One of Teresa’s grandkids, Taraji, was asked what she wanted for Christmas.
“Instead of saying she wanted something for herself, she said she wanted a home,” said Davila.
Teresa’s husband died of cancer in 2015.
There have been many struggles since.
But having a full house of kids is something she said she wouldn’t change.
“That was like a blessing to me. They fill the house with joy. There’s never a dull moment.”
“She’s been through so much and to see someone that has worked so hard to get to where she is and then to change the lives of all those kids; it makes me have the best job in the world," said Tina Forcier, CEO of Habitat for Humanity of Hillsborough County.
Habitat homes aren’t free.
You have to put in many hours of sweat equity with volunteer work.
But the mortgage is manageable.
This family’s home is just one of 25 Habitat homes that will be built in this neighborhood near Chamberlin High School.
Construction is expected to start in January.
Habitat for Humanity is hoping to raise $13,000 on Giving Tuesday.
That’s enough money to pay for the roof of Teresa’s new home.
