Christy and Zachary Hullender and their two small children, Bryson and Rayna, have never known what it was like to live in a real, secure house with enough room for them all.

The Hullender’s home is a small trailer, over half a century old and with a serious mold problem. Because of old aluminum wiring, they have to worry about which outlets to use and frequently have the wiring catch on fire. Rayna would often burn herself on the space heaters the family had to use in the winter time. All four of them are force to sleep in one
room because of a hole in the ceiling of the only other bedroom, and the only toilet in the trailer is falling through the floor.

The Hullenders have always wanted to have something better for their children, but felt like they had no hope being so young and in such a low economy. After hearing about Habitat for Humanity from Zachary’s mother, they applied to be a partner family and found hope that they would soon have a home of their own.

“My children are still very small, but I know they are going to love having a new home, to have a room all their own, a place big enough for them to play,” Christy says. Christy also feels she has benefited from her time with Habitat and its homeownership classes. She is learning about finance and how to be wiser with money decisions. She is also learning how to save and invest money, how to become debt free, and how to
budget. She is also blessed by being a part of the building process through putting in the family’s sweat equity hours and getting to know the volunteers who have been working so hard on her family’s new home.

“I think that the three hundred and fifty sweat equity hours we have to do is a great idea. It helps the family to form a bond with the people who are going to help make the dream come true,” she says.

The family is excited to have their dream coming true, and wants others to also feel the joy of their own dreams being fulfilled. Christy plans to volunteer to help build another family’s home, so that she can make a difference in someone else’s life in the same way Habitat has done for her and her family.

This House is Sponsored By:
First Baptist Church of Chattanooga in
Memory of Carroll Fox