Habitat for Humanity Manatee County

Janira and Wilfredo have been on a real estate roller coaster for the past few years. They thought they were settled into a good rental home only to receive 30 days’ notice due to a foreclosure—they had been faithfully paying rent only to discover the owner had not kept up with the mortgage. Desperate not to become homeless, they managed to find an apartment for their family of four, only to be notified this spring of a huge rent increase.

Today, they’re among the first families that will move into Manatee Habitat’s new sixteen-home development, Poling Gardens. We’ll break ground on our new community in late 2022 and look forward to welcoming them to a new three-bedroom, two-bath home. Habitat’s interest-free mortgage will have them building equity right away, and the uncertainty of having to move unexpectedly will be a thing of the past.

The couple both fit the definition of hometown heroes—people who serve our community including law enforcement officers, firefighters, educators, healthcare professionals, childcare employees, and active military or veterans. Wilfredo spends his workdays building fire trucks at the world’s largest manufacturer of firefighting equipment, Pierce Manufacturing, and Janira is employed by Manatee County Schools. Two smart, adorable kids, Jadiel and Alondra, round out this fabulous Habitat family.