Homeless One Year Ago, Homeowner Today

VILLAS – Heather Chester went from homeless to homeowner in 11 months thanks to a lot of help from the community and government.
According to Sandra Jensen, a specialist with the United States Department of Agriculture (U.S.D.A) Rural Development Program, Chester who has three children, entered a homeless shelter through Family Promise of Cape May County last May. She said Chester took two jobs and underwent credit counseling to become debt-free and was able to purchase a three bedroom, two bath home on East Atlantic Avenue through a U.S.D.A. program.
Chester is the first homeowner from the Family Promise program. She told a crowd gathered for a ribbon cutting ceremony April 14 that she had gone to the county Board of Social Services last year because she was losing her home. It would be the second time in her life she was homeless.
“I was actually forced out of my mother’s home by the Division of Youth and Family Services or I was going to lose my children,” said Chester. “I didn’t want my children to be homeless, I didn’t want to be homeless.”
She was provided with a motel room for one week by social services. Chester said she had the choice of going into the homeless shelter or having her children removed from her custody.
She contacted Family Promise and met with Case Worker Kathleen O’Neil and moved into their shelter that evening.
Chester’s 22-year old sister passed away shortly thereafter. Following that, the transmission blew up on Chester’s truck during her final month at Family Promise.
“I thought this is it, this is the end,” she said.
While at a Laundromat, Chester saw an ad in a publication advertising what she thought was a rental house for under $1,000 a month. She called the number and reached Bernie Dear at Best Buy Modular Homes who told her it was not a rental, she could own the home for under $1,000 per month.
Chester who is a Certified Nurse’s Assistant, took a second job working from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 11 p.m. to 7 p.m. in a nursing home. She said she paid off all her debts and purchased her home.
“I wanted to let everybody know that Family Promise didn’t do this for me, they guided me to do it for myself and I did,” said Chester.
She said she wished other families could do as well.
“Just have hope,” said Chester. “That’s all you need is hope, faith and trust in other people.”
As she spoke under the noonday sun, chimes from the nearby St. Raymond’s Catholic Church played a hymn.
Jensen said Dear worked with Family Promise and U.S.D.A. to get financing for Chester’s home. He presented a $5,000 check to Family Promise at the ribbon cutting. Last year, his company sold 15 houses with help from the government, Dear told the crowd.
Jensen said the U.S.D.A Rural Development Program provides loans to eligible low and very low income applicants to purchase an existing house or to buy a site and construct a dwelling or purchase a new house. She said the program does not require a down payment and has very low interest rates.
U.S.D.A Rural Development State Director Howard Henderson said Chester took the most difficult path of action and persevered. He said Family Promise provided Chester with temporary shelter, home ownership and credit counseling, childcare and transportation for work.
Laurie Johnson, director of Family Promise of Cape May County presided over the blessing of the house giving Chester a loaf of bread so the house may never have hunger, a box of salt so that life would always have flavor and a bottle of wine “that joy and prosperity reign forever.”