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By Glasa Gottschalk The world has been forever changed by 2020.  At the Rockford Area Habitat for Humanity (RAHFH), it was the year we launched our first ever Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Committee.  Alongside the rest of our country, our organization was confronted with the inequity existing in our policy and structure as…

Abby, our ReStore Sales Floor Manager, joined our team in late October. If you’ve been to the ReStore lately, you’ve most likely seen her working on inventory, assisting customers, and making sure the sales floor is running like clockwork. “It’s been interesting learning the inner workings of the store,” Abby said, describing how she…

There is so much behind-the-scenes work that goes into helping Rockford Area Habitat for Humanity flourish. One of the key groups of people who help move us forward as an organization is our Executive Committee, consisting of committed leaders who love our mission and dedicate time, energy and compassion to make our affiliate the…

Deborah used to put her baby girl and her three boys— 16, 13, and 4— in the car and drive around Rockford looking at houses. They were imagining what it would be like to live in one of them. They were imagining having a little house of their own. But that, thought Deborah, was…

Meet Laura, the Rockford Area Habitat for Humanity Office Manager! Laura has worked at RAHFH since 2017. Before that, she worked directly with RAHFH homebuyers for 13 years as a Certified Housing and Credit Counselor. Laura keeps everything on track in the office, from office operations, insurance paperwork, and all of our databases, to…

What­ an incredible year it’s been for Rockford Area Habitat for Humanity – filled with generosity, compassion, dedication, and some good old fashioned grit.  I presume that not every non-profit or small business can say the same of 2020, but for us this year has been a time to learn, a time to grow,…

In the late spring of 2020, a few weeks after buying her new house, Raven dug her hands into soil for the first time and planted a rose bush. She had never gardened before, but she wanted to have something that would, in her words, grow with her in her home. Raven began to…

Rockford Area Habitat for Humanity’s final construction project of 2020 is rehabbing an existing home on Belden Street, and we are honored to feature our wonderful partner in this project, Sharonda. Sharonda grew up in Rockford and graduated from Auburn High School. She has been in the medical field in Rockford for 13 years,…

We are so fortunate to meet a lot of truly incredible families through our work at Rockford Area Habitat for Humanity. Within these families are some remarkable young people whom we have the honor to watch grow up in their homes. They are undoubtedly bright lights for our future. One of these bright lights…

We met Tikisha “Kisha” Ellis five years ago when she applied to purchase a home through our program, and one of our first memories is of her opening her pantry door in her small kitchen at her Fairgrounds Valley apartment to reveal all of the neatly-stacked cooking supplies. Kisha was an aspiring caterer. Kisha…