Making a better life for their children.

The Andrews are an immigrant family who left hardship behind in Egypt when they came to the U.S in search of a better life for their family children. Settling in the Tampa area, Rasha and George Andrew have worked passionately to carve out a new life for their family. That meant living very frugally and making lifestyle compromises to make ends meet. Rasha found employment as a medical assistant for a pediatric center. Because of limited financial resources, the family had been living in  a cramped 2-bedroom rental unit in east Tampa that was home to Rasha and George, their 11-year-old daughter, 4-year-old son and Rasha’s parents. After purchasing their Habitat home in Plant City in January 2019, Rasha recently contacted us to tell us a little about how their home has impacted their lives. 

“I really would like to thank Habitat for Humanity for helping families to get their own affordable new house.  You guys helped us a lot and I never will forget that. This is how it impacted our life: we have a low mortgage that is less than the rent we used to pay. We also have more privacy by having a bedroom for each one of us.

And during this COVID-19 pandemic, when everyone is home and there are no places to take kids to, we are able to have some fun at home. For example, in the backyard on Easter, we did an egg hunt for our kids in the backyard. My little boy has enough space to play hide and seek with Mommy and Daddy. My daughter has her own room to do her virtual school work. That privacy was one of the problems we faced before getting the house. Also we celebrated her birthday in our nice house by decorating the house and having fun together. I have included pictures of some of these activities.

Owning a home means we have stability. We have space for all of us. We are trying to make a better life for our kids.

Thank you Habitat for Humanity. Keep going and please don’t stop helping people.”

– Rasha Andrew, Habitat Hillsborough homeowner