Latoya Howard was 41 years old when she became a homeowner for the first time.

Howard, who is a medical assistant at The Kirklin Clinic of UAB Hospital, was able to achieve her goal of homeownership thanks to Habitat for Humanity of Greater Birmingham—a designated nonprofit of the UAB Benevolent Fund. She wanted to show that homeownership was possible for her two children, a son who is now 19 and a daughter who is now 4.

“I wanted to break generational cycles,” she said. “I’m the first person out of my mom’s kids to own a home, and even my mom—I don’t think anybody owns a home. It’s a family thing. I wanted to do something for my kids and show them that you don’t have to live in an apartment and rent. You can own a home.”

Howard—who moved into her Center Point home in May 2021—said that when she was younger, she made a list of goals she wanted to achieve, which included getting married, having children and owning a home.

“It was one of my goals to check off my list,” she said. “It’s a feeling of self-accomplishment. I’d rented all my adult life. I feel amazing. It’s a blessing.”

Habitat Birmingham builds and repairs homes in partnership with low-to-moderate income families to support affordable housing and disaster recovery needs across Jefferson, Shelby, Walker and St. Clair counties. The organization has built 66 homes for UAB employees and students over the last decade. During that time, Habitat Birmingham partnered with UAB volunteers to build six homes, with a seventh planned for this fall.

After she saw a friend achieve her own dreams of homeownership, in 2020 Howard was inspired to apply with Habitat Birmingham. After the initial application, Howard filled out extensive paperwork, including information about her income, living situation and why she wanted to be a homeowner.

“If you have a goal, reach it, go for it,” she said. “I second guessed myself for years [before I applied]. I watched a friend apply and I helped her build her house, and now I’d say just go for it. Habitat met me where I was at. You don’t have to go in with a 650 credit score.”

At Habitat, homes are not given away—homeowners partner with Habitat Birmingham and take part in a minimum of 300 hours building the home alongside volunteers like those from the Benevolent Fund, which has supported Habitat Birmingham as one of its designated nonprofits since its founding. Additionally, homeowners take 10 hours of homeownership education workshops. Because Howard’s home was already built before it was acquired by Habitat Birmingham, she spent her hours working at the Habitat ReStore. She even used a week’s vacation time from her job at UAB to volunteer so she could reach her goal of homeownership sooner.

“At the ReStore, you rub elbows with a lot of people and hear stories that are so motivating,” Howard said.

She also worked onsite to help build her friend’s home, hammering in nails and writing scriptures on the planks and walls of the home.

“I’m so in awe of that, seeing the process from start to finish,” Howard said.

In addition to working at the ReStore, Howard said she benefited from the classes she was required to take, including classes on financial wealth, buying a car and making a will. Howard said she especially appreciated being able to teach her teenage son about credit after learning more about it through the classes offered.

“I want my kids to know more than apartment living, and that you can do anything that you put your mind to,” she said. “I want them to set their bars higher than me.”

Even before the Benevolent Fund started sponsoring Habitat houses nine years ago, Benevolent Fund manager Lisa Higginbotham had worked on Habitat builds and loved the experience. She said she was inspired by Habitat’s belief that each home was a hand up, not a handout.

“There’s always a sense of accomplishment and a little bit of pride you take in what you’re doing,” Higginbotham said. “I wanted something UAB employees could contribute to, participate in and see the direct result of their work. With the Benevolent Fund, you sign up, you send money, but you don’t often see the direct result of your work. I wanted us to be able to engage in something very, very visual that anybody can do. You don’t have to have any particular skills. This really was a way for us to engage our donors and potential donors in literally building our community.”

For Howard, her goal was always to live in a home, not just a house. She said she picked the best neighborhood possible for her family, one with quiet neighbors, manicured lawns and a hill that she and her 4-year-old daughter drive up every day.

“We drive up this huge hill and every day she says, ‘we’re almost home sweet home,’” Howard said. “It makes me smile. You feel good about it, that you made a move that was beneficial to them. I am so grateful. God showed favor on me.”