Changing Lives Around the World


An entrepreneur from Esteli

 

Did you know that Habitat Ventura County supports families in Nicaragua too? Pictured below is Ruth Nohemi and her eldest daughter. Ruth gets up every day at 3:30am to help her mother with her Tortilleria. She lives with her husband and two daughters in a house made of wooden planks and a zinc roof. During the winter, Ruth’s family would wake up in the middle of the night soaked from the rain leaking through. This year, volunteers helped Ruth’s family install a new roof, windows and doors as part of Habitat’s ‘seed shelter’ program. Ruth also received training in entrepreneurship and opened her new business; a second-hand clothing store. With her new venture, Ruth is able to generate enough income to cover the food expenses for her family and hopes to expand so that she eventually pays of the land.
Through micro-credit programs and technical assistance, Habitat Nicaragua has served over 14,000 families since 1984. It takes a community to raise a Habitat house and that’s why we’re building both in our county and globally – because everyone needs a safe, affordable place to call home.