Habitat for Humanity hands over three Las Vegas homes

By Jinae West

Friday, July 17, 2009 | 4:33 p.m.

Three families received keys to their new Habitat for Humanity homes Friday.

Guy Amato, president and chief executive officer of Habitat for Humanity in Las Vegas, said the project broke ground in January. He said in the fiscal year ending June 30, the organization has built 10 homes and logged more than 30,000 hours of volunteer work.

"It's a real significant number and a real compliment to the community because it's all volunteers from around the valley," Amato said.

A group gathered outside the homes to recognize those who donated their time, money and efforts to help make the dedication possible. The Dew, Santana and Valdera families also were introduced and given a round of applause. Each family received a Bible and a tool kit because, Amato said jokingly, the work on a house is never finished.

The three homes, all in the 1500 block of London Porter Court just south of McCarran International Airport, were dedicated by members of Habitat for Humanity and the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors.

Rosa Santana, who works as a housekeeper at St. Rose Dominican Hospital, cried tears of joy when it was her turn to speak. She has been renting two rooms from a friend while helping to build her house.

With faith, she said she knew she would make it far with her three children. She thanked Habitat for Humanity because she "learned with discipline and saving, anybody can achieve anything," she said through a translator.

Similarly, Victor Valdera and Soretta Dew thanked the staff and supporters for their help.

"Without your sweat, blood and tears, we'd probably be living in an apartment for the rest of our lives," Valdera said.

Dew was emotional when she walked to the front of the group. She held her hand over her face and said she was at a loss of words.

"It's all right, Soretta," someone in the crowd said.

Dew told them it was difficult at times building the home in the heat and dust under the desert sun because she has asthma. "But I had to do this for me and my kids," Dew said.

To qualify for the program, Amato said families can't earn more than 60 percent of the area's median income as defined by Housing and Urban Development ($39,240 in the Las Vegas area) but must earn a minimum salary because a mortgage is required. In addition, each adult in the household must perform 300 hours of volunteer labor to stay in the program and purchase a home.

Amato handed the families their house keys and watched as each cut a red ribbon to get into their front doors.

"It's truly a blessing. I'm just so happy," Dew said. "It was hard work, and some days I was sick, but I'd come in anyway to work. You got to do what you got to do."

Amato said while Habitat for Humanity's goal is to create homes for those who need them, it's also a way to build a sense of community by bringing people together. He said sometimes there are bank presidents working side by side with busboys, so it breaks down stereotypes and conceptions people have of one another.

"And by the time they leave the job site, they've changed their perspective on the world," he said. "I believe that's as much part of our mission as it is building the house. Building the house is the activity, the end product is the house, but really what the mission is is to create that sense that everybody does deserve a place to live."