‘We will never have to move again’: Barrie family overjoyed with new Habitat for Humanity home

It’s was tough to hold back the tears of joy as a Barrie family received the keys to their new Habitat for Humanity home Sept. 30.

Tara Graham and her children, Isabella and Dylan Rayner, finally stood in a home of their own after being forced to move six times in the past eight years.

“Thanksgiving this year will give us one more thing that we are all thankful for and that is this house and it’s ours,” Graham said as she struggled to hold back tears during the key ceremony.

The Lampman Lane home, which is the 44th home erected by Habitat for Humanity Huronia in 25 years, was made possible with donated materials and labour from several Barrie companies.

Habitat for Humanity homeowners put in their own “sweat equity” and financial contributions to make home ownership possible.

Before she discovered Habitat for Humanity, Graham feared she would never find a stable home for her children.

Two years ago, she worried her income was too high to be accepted but is happy she decided to apply anyway.

“For me to see the smiles on their faces because they know we will never have to move again is all I need,” Graham said during the ceremony. “Isabella already has most of the house decorated and Dylan is anxious to unpack for the last time.”

Graham, who fell on hard times following a separation from her husband, said a string of bad luck found them moving from house to house.

Disrepair, pest, and untreated mould issues forced the family to look for other accommodations again and again.

With the high cost of renting, she never thought she would never be able to safe enough money to pay for a down payment on a house of their own.

That’s where Habitat for Humanity Huronia came in.

“You have given something to myself and my children that no words can ever express how grateful we are and will always be,” she told Habitat staff and volunteers. “Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”

Several companies, including Barrie Trim and Mouldings, helped make the new Habitat home possible.