Ties That Bind

Having a home of their own brings joy to Michele and Neal Hughley.

Though they had never met before, five volunteers and Neal and Michele Hughley had something in common from day one of the JCWP: Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter helped build each of their houses. To further the bond, all were brought together by Habitat for Humanity to help build the Hughleys’ house in Plains.

“I’m from Plains, so of course I know about the Carters,” Michele says. Fellow-Carter-house homeowners who helped her build included: Cecelia Dukuly of the Milwaukee, Wis., 1989 JCWP; Sonia Streets from the Sandtown (Baltimore), Md., 1992 JCWP; Francisco and Gloria Argueta of the Waterloo, Ontario 1993 JCWP; and Cheryl Morgaridge from the Eagle Butte, S.D., 1994 JCWP.

Neal and Michele have just completed basic training for new jobs as correctional officers with the Youth Development Center in Sumter County. Prior to moving into their new Carter-built house with their 3-year-old daughter, they alternately lived with Michele’s family in Plains and Neal’s family in Dawson, Ga.

“So, it feels really good to have a place of our own,” Michele says. “It’s the best blessing there is to see my daughter grow up in a home of her own.”


--Tilly Grey





Reprinted from Habitat World Magazine, December 2000/January 2001.
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©2000 Habitat for Humanity International