“Home is where dreams start becoming a reality!”
Diana Dalon and her 13-year-old daughter, Haiden, are very eager and excited to accomplish their lifelong dream of owning their forever home. Diana is a single mother and currently works two jobs: an inventory and forklift specialist for a third party mailing and printing center and a Keto meal preparer and deliverer. Her daughter loves fashion, playing soccer, making TikToks, and being with her emotional support dog.
For the past five years, Diana and Haiden have lived together in a one-bedroom apartment. Diana wanted to give her daughter the bedroom, so she sleeps in the living room on an air mattress. Every night for the past 12 years, Haiden has been waking up at 3 am to check and make sure that her mother was still there. At the age of three, Haiden’s father abandoned the family and never looked back, so she has been waking up to make sure that her mother hasn’t left as well. Diana tells us “My daughter has lost ALL of the major players in her young life.” After Haiden’s father left the family, Diana could not support her family on her own, so she moved in with her sister, who was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer. Haiden and Diana’s niece became very close with one another when they lived together, but her niece sadly passed away after an accident at a gun range the day after Christmas. After making the decision to move from Georgia to Florida, Diana asked her older son to move with them to help support the family. He moved for the first who years, but sadly left the family to start his own life in Colorado, which really hurt Haiden as well. A year later, Haiden’s favorite person in the world, her grandfather, passed away, soon followed by her grandmother.
The mother-daughter-duo has been looking for a new start and Habitat was their answer. Diana says she felt so many emotions when she learned they were accepted into the program. “I felt overwhelmed, shocked, incredibly thankful, and relieved!”. Not only is Diana excited to start her sweat equity, but she is also excited to be a part of the Habitat family and community. “I expect to learn that people actually do care about me and my story. I expect to learn that people do love unconditionally – giving their time and expertise to complete strangers like me. I expect to become part of an awesome family, even after I receive the keys to me home!” She is excited to finally have her own room with a lock on the door, a yard for her daughter’s emotional support dog, and a space where Haiden can invite friends over to play.
For anyone who is considering applying for the Habitat homeownership program, Diana offers these words of advice: “Just do what you have to do to succeed in life! You wont get out what you don’t put in. If you want something bad enough, you will make a plan and then put that plan into action!”. For more information on how to apply or refer someone to the program, please check out our Apply Page on our website.
“I want my daughter to know that she is important, loved, wanted, and needed! No kid should ever have to wonder if you’re going to be there when they wake up. I also want to teach her to rely only on the Lord and herself.”
The Dalon Family Home was dedicated on August 21st, 2023.
