Isabel and his wife Fidela, are the proud owners of a Habitat home in Santa Elena, Petén. Isabel works as a tour guide, while Fidela is in charge of the house chores.

Before partnering with Habitat Guatemala, Isabel and Fidela used to live in rented houses for around 17 years, since they moved from the community they are both from (Cahoba) because of work . “We have been renting for several years, we moved here because of work, but after many years we decided to invest in a house of our own and quit paying rent, » Isabel explains.

They learned about Habitat programs through one of Construred’s associates, who explained the process to them. After doing some research, they decided it was time to invest in their own house. “After many years of renting, we decided to start the process and to have our own house,” Isabel mentions.

When asked how they feel with their new home, Isabel answers, “We feel very content to know that now we are paying for our own house, no more rent! We are paying for something that belongs to us, it gives us hope,» Fidela adds, «I feel good and in calm in here.»

«We are grateful to Habitat, because they gave us the opportunity to build our house, we took advantage of it, and now it is a reality,» Isabel mentions.

In the future they are planning to add tiles to the floor and paint the house. Both Isabel and Fidela enjoy to rest in the hammocks in the hallway during the afternoon.

About their time spent with the volunteers they recall, “ It was very hard for them because they had to dig trenches and the ground here is very sticky and hard to work with, but they still managed to keep on working, it was a fun week with all of them.»

“Thank you all for giving your time and effort to support us. Please, feel welcome to visit us whenever you want to come back” – Isabel and Fidela.

Yovanni (32) lives with his wife Yamileth (32), and their son, Harrison (8), in their new Habitat home in San Benito, Petén. Yovanny works as a delivery man for a cosmetics company, while Yamileth stays at home and runs a small tortilla shop from her home.

Before partnering with Habitat Guatemala, the family used to live in the house of  Yamileth’s parents, and then, they starting renting a house for over six  years. They were paying a considerable amount without any chance of owning the house in the future. The prime motivation to build a new home, was that the family had their own space, “We thank my sister for her support, as she gave us with this piece of land and helped us to start with this process.  We had decided that we were going to build our house with local materials, and cover it with metal sheets pieces of wood,  or any other material in order to have our house. Later, we learned about Habitat through a mason who explained to us about the process,” says Yovanni.

He explains that after they learned about Habitat and had the opportunity to discuss about it, they finally decided to invest in a home. The family wanted more space, “We started the process and everyone was very supportive everytime I called to answer how the process was moving forward. When our application was approved, we were very happy!” explains Yovanni.

When asked how they feel about their new home, Yovanni smiles, and responds, ”I truly feel very happy! Since we started a new family with Yamileth, we were not able to afford our own house, and now we can say that this is ours! Our efforts today, will be the future of our child.» We have fulfill one of our dreams, one of many.» Yamileth adds, «I feel very content, it is not the same to rent than to own something of your own. To know that we are paying for something that belong to us, makes me happy!»

In the future, the family plans to paint the house, add an extra room, and a hallway in the front to place a hammock and rest in the afternoons. As a family, they enjoy spending time together. “We have a lot of plans for the house, we hope that we can accomplish them,” Yovanni continues, «Our life has improved in a big way. Now, we take extra care of it, we are planting fruit trees, and fixing the front yard too.»

When asked about the week of construction with the volunteers, he answers, “It was a great week. They worked really hard in digging the trenches, and they were suffering from the heat too. But, thanks to them we were able to advance further in the construction of our house, the masons were very pleased with their support, and all the work they did.»

The family finishes by sharing a message to the volunteers: “ We are very grateful to each one of you, thank you for your support in building this dream alongside us.  May God bless your path and your family.»