Cesar Herrera, his wife María Piedad and their two daughters, Adela (11) and Elena (2) are living in their new house in Chimaltenango. Before partnering with Habitat Guatemala, Cesar, who is an electrician, and his family were renting and moving from one house to another.

They learned about Habitat Guatemala at a local hardware store that promotes our work, and decided it was a great opportunity to finally have a house of their own. “Last year, our Christmas gift was the authorization of our mortgage loan,” says María.

Cesar explains: “our hope was to give our daughters a safe place where to live, and now it is a dream come true.”

The Herrera family is decorating their house little by little and have a lot of plans for the future, like adding a concrete fence out front,  false ceiling and even a small salon space for María, who is a hairstylist.  “I have always dreamt of having a big garden, with different types of flowers and plant, and now I am happy, because little by little I am starting to grow my own garden,” says María.

“We feel really happy, renting was not easy, but now we are in our home,” expresses Cesar about their house.

They have great memories about the volunteers, “It was a very special experience, we shared laughs and jokes,” they continued: “We would not have advanced so fast in the construction if it had not been for the volunteers help.”

“We are very grateful for the volunteers, they were a big part of our dream that is now a reality. May God bless you all, feel welcome anytime you want to come back, we will happily receive you!” they expressed, as a message to the volunteers.

Hugo Yuman and his wife, Mayda, live in their new Habitat house in Chimaltenango with their two young sons, Jefferson (14) and Andrew (7). Hugo had learned about the low-interest loans that Habitat for Humanity Guatemala offers qualifying families on an advertisement four years ago, but in that time he and his wife did not have the resources to build.  Years passed by and they were able to buy a piece of land that allowed them to finally build a place to call their own!

The Yuman family used to live in a relative’s house that was in poor condition. It had a leaky roof, walls without cement plaster, and it was too small for the whole family.

“I feel really happy and satisfied, my children are also happy. The house looks large, it’s organized and feels fresh, there is not too much heat or cold,” says Hugo. In the future, they are planning to add a garden outside and ceramic tiles to the bathroom.

Hugo explains: “As a family we now enjoy eating and watching TV together.” He continues: “ I was very surprised with the work of the volunteers that came, they had a lot of energy, enthusiasm and dedication.”

“I am forever grateful with the volunteers, they helped us fulfill the dream of having our own house. May God bless them and their children. Here, you have the doors open whenever you want to come again,” says Hugo, in a message to the volunteers.

This happy family of five is living in their new Habitat house in Milpas Altas, Sacatepéquez. Before building their home, Silvia and her husband Cesar, who works as a merchant, lived in a room with his parents with not much space.

Silvia and Cesar have three children, seven-year-old Pamela, five-year-old Carmen and three-year-old Alberto. They wanted to build and have their own home, so when they heard about Habitat, they decided it was a great opportunity.  “A cousin told me about Habitat Guatemala and we started looking for more information. Thank God we have our home, it is a big achievement for us,” says Silvia.

The children, especially the youngest, Alberto,  are really happy with the house because they can play freely with their cousin Brandon who lives nearby. The Vásquez family is planning to add more rooms and a second story in the future. Silvia explains how she feels with her house: “I am really grateful with God, it is a great joy to have a place to call our own.”

“I am grateful for the volunteers who came, because without them it would have been more difficult and would have taken more time to build our house, they were really efficient and friendly. It was a great blessing to share with them, my  greetings and blessings to them,” refers Silvia about the volunteers.