The next building project was the first outside of Nanaimo, on Strathcona Road in Ladysmith. A single-detached three-bedroom house would be built on a lot donated by the Town of Ladysmith. Habitat for Humanity Mid-Vancouver Island partnered with a Leadership BC program called the “Legacy 7” team. Doug Godkin from Leadership BC said, “This is monumental for our community for two reasons. First, we get to have a globally recognized organization place their footprint here in Ladysmith to help a family and bring together a community. Second, this project is the first time that Habitat has given a portion of a project to an outside source working as a team. This is very exciting for our community. There are so many volunteers wanting to be involved and most importantly, we have an enthusiastic and connected community behind us.”
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Volunteers from Discovery College
The Groundbreaking ceremony took place in June of 2008. With the help of BC Housing and the Real Estate Foundation of BC, which covered many of the building costs, Teresa and her two children moved into their new home in March of 2009.
At the time, Teresa was juggling three jobs as she raised her two children. Her son also struggled with health problems related to the mould in their rental home. Teresa commented, “This is a life-changing event for us and we really appreciate how this community pulled together to help my family build this home. It has been an amazing and uplifting experience for us and we find it difficult to express how thankful we are.”