304 Tremont, Champaign. See images on Flickr.

Nguyen Family Thankful for Home of Their Own

A standing room only crowd of supporters helped the Nguyen family celebrate a dream come true when Habitat for Humanity of Champaign County dedicated a new home at 304 W. Tremont, Champaign to them. Champaign Mayor Jerry Schweighart, steering committee member Carrie Peltier, and family relative Quyet Nguyen thanked those who helped make the new house a home, and the family was presented with beautiful afghans that were hand-knitted by Habitat volunteer Caitrin Nicol.

Vinh expressed his gratitude to all of the people who came together on this build, and said he was happy that his girls would have a yard to play in and his wife would finally have a kitchen of her own. The home was supported by the Building on Faith Team of 200, the City of Champaign, an Open Door Challenge Grant, and the area's Catholic Churches.

He happily accepted the keys to the new home from construction coordinator Larry Fainter. This will be the first home for Vinh, Dieu and their girls Quyen, Nghi, and Vy who moved from Ho Chi Min City, Vietnam about three years ago. 

The family bought the house from Habitat at cost through a zero-interest loan. The Nguyens will pay off the $45,000 interest-free mortgage over the next 20 years.

Donors, Volunteers and Supporters Help Make a Dream Come True for Nguyen Family

Thank you to the dedicated volunteers -- to numerous to mention individually -- who gave generously of their time and talents to make the home at 304 W. Tremont in Champaign a reality for the Nguyen family.  The home, Habitat's 40th, was financially supported by the Building on Faith Team of 200, the City of Champaign, an Open Door Challenge Grant, and the area's Catholic Churches.  Thanks to the following businesses and individuals that generously donated or greatly discounted items for the home:

Meet the Nguyen Family

Vinh Nguyen, his wife, Xuan-Dieu, and three daughters Quyen, 8; Nghi, 4; and Vy, 1; are very excited about moving into their new home at 304 Tremont in Champaign. The five previosly shared a two-bedroom mobile home with Vinh’s father, Kha.  The Nguyens moved to the U.S. three years ago from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.  Before long they learned of Habitat from a friend and one year later applied and were accepted. Vinh has worked at Advanced Filtration Systems for nearly two years.

“We are just so very happy,” was the first thing Vinh Nguyen told Habitat's Executive Director Laura Huth when she first let him know his family was selected as the next Habitat family. “My daughters will have space outside to play and not have to always be inside.

"Quyen [the oldest daughter] really wants her own room - private,” said Vinh with a shy smile on his face. “She goes to her friends homes after school a lot and they all have their own rooms, and she wants to be able to have her friends over to her room to play and to study.”

It’s no wonder the artistic third-grader wants her own room: Quyen and her sisters, along with both her mom and her dad, all share one bedroom in the two-bedroom trailer.

The Nguyen family’s three-bedroom home was built through a new program at Habitat called “Building on Faith” where 200 people in the community each donate $200 to raise $40,000 in cash towards the home’s construction costs. Other funding was secured from the City of Champaign, a matching challenge grant, and area Catholic churches. In all, nearly $70,000 was raised to construct the home, which was dedicated to the family on December 19, 2005.

Nearly the entire family pitched in to earn the 500 sweat equity hours Habitat requires: Dieu wrote thank you notes to volunteers that were hand-drawn by Quyen. Vinh, his brother Cang, and grandfather Kha were constatnly on the worksite hammering, roofing, painting, and more.