Habitat for Humanity of Metro Denver is proud to
introduce Abdel and Maha and their three children. Also living in the household is Abdel's mother,
Awtis. The family moved to the United States from
Egypt in 1985 and has lived in Colorado since 1986.
Currently Abdel works as a banquet server for Marriott,
where he has been employed for five years. Maha works
as a childcare worker and has been employed for four years.
At this time the family of six live in a three-bedroom
apartment in southeast Denver. Rent is very expensive for
this small apartment and the living situation is very
crowded.
When asked what homeownership means to their
family, Abdel responded by saying, "homeownership means a
lot, so much more than I could find words in Englisih to
explain, but when you have a stable roof over your head it
allows your family to really settle down. It is so nice to
think of our family having our own place, somewhere the
whole family can live together comfortably, safely and
securely." Abdel spoke of the many difficulties of living in
a large apartment complex, everything from the noise to the
crime. "This home means a lot to my children. For them to
have their own home means that they won't have to move in a
year or whenever a lease is through. They too can put roots
down and that means they will be able to be in the same
school, rather than having to move around." The Meged
family's home will be on Olive St. in Commerce City. It will
be completed in November, 2002.
To say that Abdel and
his family are grateful for the opportunty that Habitat is
giving them is an understatement. He truly understands the
Habitat mission and it's goal to end sub-standard housing by
bringing people together. Abdel stated, "People everywhere
need a roof and a safe place to grow. Habitat gives families
that opportunity and they do it in such a way that it brings
out the best in people as a whole. We need each other and
that means that we need to help each other."
Abdel
and his family wanted to send this message to their
interfaith sponsor, Habitat on the Hill, "We appreciate the
work that you do as a group of people and recognize that it
comes from the heart. Some people look at my family and our
differences and then instantly look for our mistakes. I
cannot express how grateful I am to meet people who are
willing to love and to lend a helping hand, despite our
differences."