Love, Sweat, and Happy Tears – A Partner Family Spotlight

When Amber Love found out she would be moving into a Habitat for Humanity home in Mission, she was overwhelmed with emotion.

“Amber was very keen, committed, and patient throughout the entire process,” said Lynne Stanger, Director of Family Services for Habitat for Humanity Greater Vancouver. “For her, finding a safe, bright, and secure stable home was exactly what she wanted to provide for her two boys. It is going to be a great new beginning for her family.”

Amber had already completed 25 hours of “sweat equity” prior to getting the call to say she had been accepted as a partner family. In order for us to assess a family’s commitment to our program, they must complete 25 service hours in one of our ReStores. Once accepted, they agree to completing another 500 hours.

Amber worked those first 25 hours in the Langley ReStore, dropping by to volunteer following shifts at work as a fitness trainer at the community centre. No stranger to hard work, she works six days per week with a couple of half days. On those shorter workdays, she put in five hours of volunteer time at the Langley ReStore and served more time on the weekend at the Abbotsford store. She also sacrificed some Saturdays of her paid work to volunteer at the ReStore, enabling her to power through her hours.

Amber says it seemed natural for her to serve her hours swiftly. She is highly organized and disciplined, sets goals, and achieves them. Homeownership has always been a dream, but with a single income, two young sons and skyrocketing prices in the Lower Mainland, she just needed a hand up.

Completing 500 hours may sound daunting, but this can be accomplished with some help and a little creativity.

In addition to shifts at our ReStores and on our build site, there are opportunities to volunteer at events, such as trade shows, and the BMO Marathon. Should a family require a babysitter while they are doing their volunteer hours, those hours also count toward their total hours. Family partners can also have their friends and family help with accumulating volunteer hours. Amber has a strong core of girlfriends in Mission who started a FB messaging group and eagerly completed over 150 friend hours on Amber’s behalf. As a single mom, she can receive up to 200 hours from her friends.

In September, some of the Mission families dedicated some of their hours to organizing a community BBQ. Given there were already seven families who had been living there for a year, it was a great opportunity to bring them all together. They created a FB group which continues to allow them to stay in touch and on top of local happenings. For the BBQ, some helped with organizing, some were on food prep and set up, one of the Dads is a photographer who captured the special moments, and Amber, also a former Early Childhood Educator, organized and ran the kids’ games.

Amber had 40 hours of sweat equity logged before even moving into her home!

Store Managers and our Build Site Supervisor are unanimous in saying that Amber’s work ethic is stellar. Senior ReStore Manager, Andrea Bachman says Amber is one of the best volunteers she has ever worked with. “She can literally do anything. From hanging mirrors, to building lights, to building furniture, and merchandising, she can do anything. And she’s fast.”

“She’s not afraid of hard work,” says Jason DeVries, the Site Supervisor in Mission. “It seems the heavier the work, the more enthusiastic she is. She’s done everything from moving dirt by wheelbarrow, to picking out rocks in the backyard and all the heavy lifting in between.”

In turn, Amber has a genuine love for connecting with others. “It’s been very positive, and I really like everyone I work with: Jason, Lynne, the volunteer crew on Thursdays and everyone at the ReStores,” says Amber. “It’s been a great experience.”

Through her volunteer hours, Amber was quick to point out that she has learned how to properly use a drill, follow instructions, assemble a variety of items and landscape. She is grateful for these and many more transferable skills.

Amber’s motivation was clear from the start. “For me it’s about building equity,” she says. She knew that as soon as she completed her 500 hours, she would start accumulating funds that will come back to her for a down payment on a home in the open market once she is ready to take that step.

She likes the partnership model that Habitat has established. “I think it’s a really good way to show your dedication; being proud of where you live, to appreciate and be grateful for this chance we’re given,” she says.

Driven, dedicated, and determined – Amber is a powerhouse. She completed her hours in record time. In just under four months, Amber reached her 500 hours while helping at our booth at the West Coast Women’s Show in October. Despite being finished, she continues to emulate the values of Habitat and has started offering fitness classes to the families in her complex.

Does she ever relax? Amber likes to take her sons, aged 9 and 11 camping and enjoyed a couple of excursions with them over the summer. She admits the transition of moving into a new community and changing schools was somewhat challenging, but her boys love the other kids in the complex and there “is a great sense of community”.

We’re confident Amber is going to continue putting in the sweat – she is a trainer after all, and we sincerely hope that happy tears and memories fill her days ahead.