Habitat World Online

A Brighter Future

“My mommy tells me the early bird gets the worm. We have both been working hard. My mommy misses me every Saturday. But it is ok because she is an early bird trying to get the worm.

“I’m so happy I don’t have to keep on moving around. Me and my mommy used to lay in bed at bedtime and pretend how our house will look.

“My Habitat home means a lot to me.”

Earlier this year, Habitat for Humanity’s Youth Programs department held an essay contest for homeowner youth. The topic: “What my Habitat home means to me.” The results: Confirmation that Habitat’s house-building work is not merely improving living conditions for families now, but offering a new life to some of the most vulnerable people in our societies.

Millions of children around the world are waiting for the opportunity that Alyxis Smith, a 9-year-old homeowner youth in Virginia, received when her mother purchased an 1,100-square-foot Habitat house. You can make it happen.

To read more youth essays — like Alyxis’, excerpted above — visit www.habitat.org/youthprograms. For more information on how you can get involved or to make a donation, visit www.habitat.org.