“I am building because I am willing to grow.”

Lakesha Davis is a Full Service Assistant for the Pinellas County School Board and is on her journey towards homeownership with Habitat. She is a single mother to five children: her daughter, Kaniya (age 16), her foster son, Romeo (age 12), her son, Ke’ontae (age 11), and her newest daughter, one-year-old Kamiya. She also has one older child who lives out of the home. The boys in the family love to play football, soccer, basketball, and video games. Kaniya enjoys doing her nails and makeup, watching movies, and YouTube. Little Kamiya likes to run around and play with her Minnie Mouse toy.

The Davis Family is currently living with Lakesha’s grandparents. She says “It’s very overcrowded, but we make it work”. In the home, the oldest daughter, Kaniya, has a room to herself. Lakesha and baby Kamiya also share a room together. All of the boys sleep in the front room of the house on blow up mattresses. Lakesha tells us “I think back and look over my life and try to see where did I go wrong? What can I fix to make it better for me and my kids”. That is when she decided she was going to apply for the Habitat program. Her acceptance into the program brought her feelings of pure joy. “I was very excited when I got that call and they said congratulations. I’m so happy Habitat gave me the opportunity. This means I’m going in the right direction and I would like to continue on that path. So, if you see tears – they are tears of joy!”

The family is looking forward to having more space in their new forever home. Lakesha and her children are ready and willing to grow and make new memories together. She offers these words of wisdom to anyone who is considering applying to the Habitat program: “Reach for the stars and never give up.” To learn more about the Habitat for Humanity program and how to apply, please check out our Apply Page.