Family moves into home from Habitat
There was no room for words, only tears, as Nicole Benton and her two daughters received the keys to their home.
“I’m feeling everything right now; I’m excited, nervous, overjoyed,” Benton said. “This is something we have waited for, for years.” Benton started building the house in November in Lady Lake once the foundation was poured, along with the Villagers Habitat For Humanity club, which sponsored the project.
This is the third home built by the club since it started four years ago. The first house was completed in November 2020. Now, the group is to the point where members hope the Bentons’ new home won’t be the only one they build this year.
Read said she remains in contact with every Habitat family she works with.
“They become friends, they are people you build connections with,” Read said. “I can say Nicole is one of my dear friends now.”
Benton and her two daughters, Jaide, 10, and Janaiza, 17, were officially able to move into their three bedroom home after about four months of construction.
This is the first time both daughters get a room of their own, Benton said.
“Jaide is so excited to decorate her room and show it off,” she said. “She and Janaiza both already have decorations ready to hang up.”
Excitement was the theme of the day as more people arrived at the home for the dedication.
Sally Read, co-president of Villagers Habitat for Humanity, said she hardly slept the night before.
“There isn’t a more loving, grateful person who deserves this home than Nicole,” Read said. “She was here every single day putting in the work.”
For Habitat recipients, they have to put in a certain amount of sweat equity and are required to participate in a percentage of the construction of the home.