Lafayette Habitat for Humanity celebrated the completion of its 92nd home at a dedication ceremony at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, August 28, 2013. The home is the third of at least 24 homes to be constructed in McComb/Veazey neighborhood as part of Habitat’s Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative. The new homeowner, Brenda Broussard, was in attendance with her family and other members of the community who helped build her home.
During the dedication ceremony, Broussard was presented with keys to the new home she helped build. Along with other community volunteers, Broussard worked over 300 hours of “sweat equity” in order to realize her dream of becoming a homeowner.
Brenda Broussard is a mother of four and a long-time employee of the Lafayette Parish School System. She is now raising 2 of her grandchildren, 12-year-old Taylor and 8-year-old Braylon. She began her partnership with Habitat in 2012 and completed her sweat equity requirements exactly a year later. She says it was “life-changing” to learn what goes into building a home and to interact with volunteers from around the nation. “It was exciting meeting people who came from everywhere, and instead of going on vacation they volunteered to help someone else have a home. It just makes you feel special.” Brenda has helped build at least 4 Habitat houses from the ground up, and continued to work on her neighbors’ homes before her move-in date. She will be purchasing her home from Lafayette Habitat via a no-interest mortgage, and her monthly payments will then be “recycled” to help build homes with other local families in need.