Vickie Montoya and her daughter Star (16) on February 2, 2016, the day they found out they were accepted into the Habitat program.

Vickie Montoya and her daughter Star (16) on February 2, 2016, the day they found out they were accepted into the Habitat program.

Vickie Montoya was born and raised in Bryan, TX and has worked at Scott & White Clinic as a Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) for 8 years. Her daughter Xiara “Star” enjoys her studies as a sophomore at College Station High School, where she is involved in Future Farmers of America.

In their free time, they enjoy cooking, watching tv shows and also being outdoors. Although they enjoy spending time together, they would like to have a space of their own. Vickie and her daughter currently share a bedroom in a poorly insulated home without locking windows. When Vickie attended the informational meeting about Habitat, she was doubtful at first that she would even be accepted. But, she found courage to finally turn in her application once she decided she didn’t want to be “stuck in the same place.”  When we asked Vickie about her acceptance into the Habitat homeownership program, she explained “There were so many mixed emotions and it was a long process but I never lost faith.”

Now that Vickie has been accepted into the Habitat program, she must complete 500 hours of sweat equity by helping build her own home and her neighbors’ homes. Habitat homeowners can also perform sweat equity by volunteering at ReStore, at the Habitat office, and by taking homeownership classes offered by the affiliate. When this process seems difficult, Vickie’s daughter and her friend and coworker Courtney encourage her to keep going and help her by volunteering their own sweat equity hours. Vickie and her daughter have quickly completed 72 hours at the ReStore in just a couple weeks.

Through owning a home, Vickie hopes that she will set an example for her daughter and demonstrate to her that, with hard work and dedication, you can achieve your dreams. Vickie is very grateful for the opportunity to soon own her own home and for the people she is meeting throughout this process. She would like to thank her sponsors for helping people like her and wants you to know she “won’t let y’all down.”