Hannah and her two children, Jaydon and Kaydence, in front of their new home.

Blair Family Finds Their ‘Own Space’ Through Habitat Omaha

Hannah Packett, her mother, and her two children had lived in their rental home in Blair for nearly 15 years when their new landlord determined that the house had structural issues and gave them just 30 days to move.

With few options in Blair, Packett and her family moved in with her sister, three of her children, and a grandchild in a four-bedroom, tri-level house, taking up residence in the basement. Her mother and daughter, Kaydence, 11, slept on an L-shaped couch, while she and her son, Jaydon, 8, shared a bed.

That was three years ago. She’s been looking for a house of her own ever since.

“It’s either the houses are too expensive, or if they are affordable, they go off the market within days,” said Packett, a certified nursing assistant at the VA Hospital in Omaha.

Then, Packett’s mother saw an article in the Washington County Enterprise announcing Habitat for Humanity of Omaha’s plan to build 10 single-family homes over the next five years as part of the City of Blair’s affordable housing master plan. The homes are in the West Valley neighborhood near the former Dana College campus at 24th and Nebraska streets.

Packett applied and learned she qualified to purchase a home through Habitat Omaha’s Home Journey Program. The program offers financial education, affordable mortgage loans and community resources to help hardworking people buy homes and build a lasting foundation for future generations.

After completing the requirements, Packett signed a purchase agreement for a three-bedroom, light-blue house along 24th Street.

“It’s exciting,” she said. “I have a house, and it’s actually mine.”

She won’t be far from family. Both of Packett’s sisters live blocks away. “My kids can walk to their houses if they want,” she said.

The new home will offer freedoms that Packett and her children haven’t had before. After completing her billing and medical coding degree, Packett hopes she and her children can take vacations to Wisconsin Dells or Disney World.

“We won’t have to penny pinch,” she said.

Kaydence and Jaydon are thrilled to have rooms of their own and be able to invite friends over for sleepovers and birthday parties.

“It will just be nice to have our own space,” Packett said.