Sister Barbara Busch with Chris and Sheena Deering after signing the paperwork to close on their new home.
Chris and Sheena Deering dreamed of owning their own home for years. Now this dream has become a reality as they and their sons, ages 1, 5, and 6, settle into their newly purchased WIN home in Northside.
“I can’t believe it” said Sheena, applying mint-green paint to her kitchen walls and admiring the cherry cabinets WIN installed. “I feel like I’m in someone else’s house! When the house was under construction, we kept peeking in the windows. Now it’s ours,” smiled Sheena. The couple, who both work with victims of abuse at the Family Nurturing Center, would not have been able to afford a home without WIN’s help.
Before purchasing their home, the Deerings rented half of a
two-family home that WIN sold 7 years ago to first-time home buyers. The homeowners owners were so pleased with their WIN home that they have referred several other families to WIN, including the Deerings.
As Chris and Sheena watched construction progress on WIN’s newest Northside home, they became more serious about buying it. They called WIN and enrolled in WIN’s home-buying preparation program, met weekly with a WIN coach and worked on their budget. They learned planning and saving and about resources to help them control expenses.
“ We just prayed and moved forward,” said Chris. “Our coach is awesome. She understands the operation of a family.”
The Deerings are not only happy new homeowners, but they also are helping to stabilize their street and neighborhood. Their home is one of 11 that WIN has purchased, renovated and sold on their street. Over the years, WIN has built or renovated more than 60 owner-occupied homes in Northside, helping increase homeownership and raise property values one street at a time.The neighborhood now has a new face, a new feel and new neighbors.
‘We’re thankful to the Lord that it worked out,” said Chris.
WIN is too!