TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Inside the Bare family's home, art and flowers fill every corner with color. It's the first place they have truly called their own after moving to Tucson 18 years ago.
"We were both born in Somalia. During the war we moved to Kenya. While we were in Kenya we were in a refugee camp. We moved in Tucson in 2003. We moved around a bit before ending up here," said Abdirahman Bare.
The family of eight came to the United States for a better life, but faced obstacles along the way. Bare and his wife, Yaqulo Abdi, had a hard time finding housing for all their children at an affordable price.
"Moving from Kenya to the United States was a big relief, but we had issues finding a home. All the homes we lived in were rentals. All of them had issues. That's why we kept moving to different places," said Bare.
That's when the Bares learned about Habitat for Humanity. The non-profit builds affordable homes around Tucson and were happy to help the family put down permanent roots.
"It's really terrific to hear stories of refugees that have been around the world and make Tucson their home," said Habitat for Humanity Tucson CEO, T. Vanhook.
Habitat for Humanity requires each of their future homeowners to put 250 hours of work into construction. Before the pandemic, volunteers helped with the final touches. Vanhook said not as many people are offering to pitch in these days. The Bares worked over 850 hours to build homes for their entire neighborhood in Flowing Wells.
"We have a lot of families that go over hours, but that's pretty extraordinary. We see them committed to the community, working with their neighbors, helping them move in and organizing things," said Vanhook.
By building homes, the Bares created so much more. They helped build a community that they will be proud to belong to for years to come.
"This house is our own and we are very excited to have it," said Bare.
To volunteer with Habitat for Humanity and help more families like the Bares, click here.
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