Jacinta opens the door. She’s in her son Herbert’s new house, hanging out with Herbert’s wife, Yolanda. Yolanda’s whipping up some atol, a traditional corn drink, and something else that smells so good the cats casually roam the kitchen area in hopes for a taste.

«Come on in!» says Jacinta merrily. She explains that Herbert is out giving music lessons as she picks up a music theory book to show off.

Jacinta is a proud mother. She talks about Herbert in a bold voice and wears a confident smile that doesn’t fade quickly. She explains how Herbert got his home.

«He got married, and he wanted his own place,» she says. Herbert had turned in his paperwork for a Habitat home and was approved, given his current housing situation. Herbert and Jacinta were living in a room in Jacinta’s home. They occupied one room, Jacinta and her daughter occupied another, and tienda, or store, occupied the last.

A short time later, a group of volunteers were passing blocks to get the first layers of the house built. Jacinta and Yolanda are really thankful for the help that the volunteers provided, and they hope to see the volunteers again. Their doors are always open.

Yolanda says the house is much more comfortable than when they shared a room in her mother-in-law’s home. The new place has a spacious living room, a nice arched window into the kitchen, and a Habitat Guatemala smokeless stove set up in the corner of the kitchen.

Yolanda and Herbert are more than happy with their new bed, as well. They say it’s very comfortable and it was a really thoughtful wedding gift! «It’s so good!» says Yolanda.

Herbert has set up a little area in the living room for an internet, or a computer to be used publicly for $0.60 per hour. It’s not much, but it’s a nice little way for the couple to make an added income when they’re not using the computer.

Currently in construction is a wall in front of the house for a bit of added privacy and blockage of road noise.

The house is really comfortable. Breeze flows from the front door through the house and out the back door. For the young couple, the house signifies a passage from young adulthood into independence.

«I decided to fight so that I could be independent.»

Some fights require a struggle against another person, other against a government. Agusto’s was against the cycle of poverty.

Agusto and his wife, Valerina, had lived in a little hillside on the outskirts of Momostenango for a long time. The house wasn’t theirs – it belonged to Josefina, Agusto’s mother. The house was made of adobe, an building material made from earth, water, and calcium. It was in a aging condition, as the walls of adobe homes don’t last long if they aren’t covered with cement.

Valerina, Agusto, and Agusto’s mother weren’t the only ones in the home. There were four more family members that shared a total of 2-3 rooms, depending on how you define a «room.» Quarters were cramped, adobe walls that soak up moisture rendered damp air, and the young couple was ready to be independent.

So they turned in their paperwork for a new Habitat Guatemala home. They were approved, and within a few months they were in their new home.

One of the biggest obstacles for a Agusto and his family is the struggle against the cycle of poverty. Agusto had little money saved up for a home, and paying off a big credit is no easy task. The game changer is that Agusto has already managed to drastically improve his living conditions as he invests his money into something that he will be able to claim as his own. Habitat Guatemala provided the opportunity, and Agusto took advantage.

Agusto makes backpacks with a sewing machine that he’s keeping in one of his new rooms. He stitches them together and sells them at the market. The room is full of packs that are ready to be assembled. Recently, he hasn’t had much luck selling the packs, but he’s brainstorming other ways to promote his business. «We’ll see what we can do,» he says.

The home has already made a big impact on the young couple, much more than simply putting a roof over their heads. Josefina, Agusto’s mother, is «happy, because he has his own place now. It’s given him energy to pay it off.»

Remembering the volunteers who helped build his house, Agusto is «thankful. Here, I’m happy. Hopefully someday they will all come back, because they are welcome in my home. Look at these photos!» He showed off all the photos he had from when the volunteers were there.

Agusto’s life has changed, and slowly he is working his way out of poverty by means of an investment through Habitat Guatemala. And for Agusto, that’s invaluable.

One moment and everything changed for Byron and his family. Byron and his siblings were out of the house when they got word that there was explosion, and that the explosion had taken place inside their house. Byron rushed home to find out what had happened.

His parents were cooking using a gas stove, and it had exploded. The impact was even harder when Byron found out that his parents were inside and had been critically injured. They did not die instantly, but both parents passed away within a few months.

So Byron and his three siblings – two of them too young to work – were left with the remnants of a burned house and no parents. The house was made partially of block and partially of wooden plank, except for one room that was made purely of block. Byron and his siblings all moved into that little room, and that’s where they lived for three months.

It was three months of ashy walls, cramped quarters, and horrific memories.

They realized they couldn’t go on like that. Byron talked to his local Habitat Guatemala affiliate in Chimaltenango, and was quickly approved for a new home. The construction was aided by the help of volunteers from Habitat for Humanity of Evansville.

Byron says he’s really thankful for the help that the students gave him. «It’s a shame they were only here for a little time,» he says. «A thousand thanks for the help.»

Byron has already painted every paintable surface in the house, including staining the cement floor red. With the help of his siblings he’s planning to keep adding furniture, making it feel more homey.  Byron says that looking at the old house “still takes a toll.” The family of siblings has moved on and is continuing to recover, and having a new clean uncluttered home without any remnants of ash is certainly helpful.