Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 1, 1998)
Stories by Ieva Augstums PllOtOS by Scott McClurg Photos (clockwise from bottom left) JULIE TURNER hugs her Habitat for Humanity partner, Ron Booe, during the dedication of her new home. ASHLEY TURNER tickles her sister Chanta during Chanta’s 14th birthday party. JULIE AND CACEY TURNER work on their future home with more than 40 volunteers during Lincoln-Lancaster County Habitat for Humanity’s 10-day blitz build in July. Family realizes its own ‘miracle on 25th Street’ Julie Turner recalls her worst low as the moment she saw her neighbors injecting drugs in the dark hallway of her Lincoln apartment building. At that instant she thought of her daughters and realized the unfortunate conditions they would grow' up in. She did n't want them raised in a trying environ ment, as she had been. For their sake, she sought a way out - she turned to the only thing she thought could help. With strangers' generosity, and her and her daughters' hard work, the family's new life was built from the ground up. Remembering their hardships and thinking about new memories, family members cried as the keys to their new home were placed in their hands. Finding out in April they were accept ed into the Lincoln-Lancaster County Fiabitat for Humanity family program, Turner and her four daughters, Chanta, Cacey, Ashley and Brandy, rebuilt their life July 20-31 during the 10-day blitz build of Turner, a 31 -year-old divorced produc tion worker for Outlook Windows, remembers the day she received the news. “I was so scared and happy -1 didn’t know what to feel,” Turner said. Throughout the next four months, the Turners attended meetings and were inter viewed. They showed Habitat who they were and how they lived. “We don’t live an easy life,” Turner said. “We just live day by day, knowing the sun will rise the next morning.” As a family they worked side by side through sweat and tears with Habitat. The final result: a childhood dream for one mother, and a house four sisters could call home sweet home. “If it wasn’t for God, this wouldn’t have happened,” Turner said. “It is a true blue miracle.” But Brandy, a fourth-grader at Elliot Elementary School, disagreed. “No, Mom. It’s our miracle on 25th Street,” she said. Hard life, hurt hearts Daisy Weeks, Julie’s mother, said her daughter never had everything she wanted. “All through school, kids made fun of her because she didn’t have the popular things everyone else did - clothes, shoes, a car,” she said. Turner’s parents divorced in 1976. Julie was 9 years old. Living with her father, Turner began working as a waitress when she was 13 years old. She earned S1.25 an hour. Working two other jobs during junior high and high school, Turner said, she worked to receive an income, no matter how inadequate it might have been. “The harder you work, the better pay off in the end,” Turner said. “Yes it’s hard. Yes it's enduring. But if you were in my sit uation, you would have worked your hard est to get out of it, too.” Turner attended high school for two years. She married at the age of 18 when she already had two daughters, Chanta, 2. and Cacey, 9 months. “Growing up was hard,” said Cacey, who is now a seventh-grader at Lefler Middle School. “My father was violent. He drank and smoked.” Violence occurred frequently during the girls’ childhood. Chanta, the oldest, said she has blocked out much of her younger years, including her father. “He hurt our mother and us,” Chanta said. “After I saw him physically abuse my little sister, I lost all respect and love for him.” Turner had two more daughters: Ashley, bom in 1987, and Brandy, in 1989. Turner said domestic violence domi nated her marriage. At age 24, she filed for divorce. “My marriage was doomed before it started,” she said. “I needed to protect my daughters and give them a better life." The Turners left for Kansas City, Mo., in 1993 but returned to Lincoln in January 1997 after experiencing poor living condi tions, near starvation and crime. “I didn’t want the girls to get mixed up in the wrong type of living environment,” Turner said. “Lincoln is better. It’s safer.” Ail the girls said they wanted to move back to Lincoln. “I was glad to be back in Nebraska,” said Ashley, a sixth-grader at Elliot Elementary School. “But we had to live in that stupid, yucky apartment.” ‘Only one hope’ For rent: A three-bedroom, one bath, mouse-infested apartment. Rude and vio lent neighbors leave trash out in the hall way, break windows and play loud music. Living with other families in a run down apartment building in north Lincoln, the Turners paid $445 a month plus elec tricity, gas, phone and cable. Turner said the building, on the 4700 block of Baldwin Street, was “overall, plain-out disgusting.” Turner said living in the apartment made her want to stop and give up. Maijorie Bailey, Julie’s aunt, said she told Julie about Lincoln-Lancaster County Habitat for Humanity four years ago. “I told her, ‘You only have one hope in owning a home. It’s Habitat for Humanity,”’ Bailey said. Afraid she wouldn’t qualify, Turner didn’t approach Habitat until this year. X “I can deal with this living condition. 1 have my whole life,” Turner said. “But my girls shouldn't have to - they're not sup posed to.” Bailey and Weeks agreed Turner need ed to accept Habitat's partnership offer. “Habitat opened a big door for her,” Bailey said. “She just needed to walk in and swallow her pride. She finally did" Coming home happier One month after moving into their home Aug. 1. the Turners said they have rapidly adjusted to having “the finer tilings in life,” including more space, separate rooms, peace and quiet. "I have wanted my own home since I was a little girl," Turner said. “Now I know what it is like to live in a home.” More than 40 vol unteers per day during the 10-day blitz build built the house. Ron Jochum, nwnpr nf J o c h u m Construction, said he had tun working on his first Habitat house. “Everyone working together to get something like a house built is amazing, truly amazing,” Jochum said. Laurie Fraser, vice president of Lincoln-Lancaster County Habitat for Humanity, said the solid community sup port of Lincoln makes Habitat families and houses special. “Julie and the girls are a precious fam ily,” Fraser said. “They are a strong family, strongly dedicated to the community.” Fraser said working on the Turner house always was an adventure. “All of the girls had positive attitudes,” she said. “They were willing to help build their house from the ground up.” Bailey agreed. “The foundation of this house is their blood, sweat and tears,” Bailey said. Ashley said her mother comes home every day happier than she did while living in the apartment. “I think it is because we actually have a sweet home of our own now,” she said. Still thinking it is a dream, Chanta pinches herself every morning. “Thank you for letting us have our own house,” Chanta told volunteers during the dedication ceremony of her new home. “You’re quite an astounding family, this Habitat for Humanity.” 44 I can deal with this living condition. I have my whole life. But my girls shouldn’t have to - they re not supposed to/’ Julie Turner Habitat for Humanity beneficiary UNL chapter seeks campus help for project The UNL chapter of Habitat for Humanity is planning to capture the imagination, energy and hope of students this year through lad ders, hammers and paint. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln chapter of Habitat plans to build a house this fall with the help of both City and East campuses. The group is working with its big brother, the Lmcoln-Lancaster County Habitat chapter, to find land and a family to live there. Katie Momll, UNL Habitat adviser, said the effort needs mass university involvement. "We want to build our own house with the help of both campus es,” Morrill said. “Without campus community support, the house will not stand.” President Jason Dubs said building a Habitat house is something UNL needed to do. "Our chapter is dedicated to helping the housing situation in Lincoln,” Dubs said. "Our campus is a huge resource -1 know we Ldll UU 11. Dubs said the house will take a lot of work, time and money. He is asking organizations for donations and volunteers to help with the cost and construction of the house, a S40.000 expense, he said. “Being college students, we have limited resources and time,” Dubs said. “Without the help of others, it would take three or four years to raise all the money needed for one house.” One way students and student groups can neip is mrougn /\uopi-/\ Job.” “We’ll do the coordmating and organizing,” Chris Stone, public ity chairwoman, said. “You just need to donate your hands and time.” The Adopt-A-Job program asks groups to provide volunteers, funding or materials for construction projects to help build a house. Stone said the chapter wants the project to be an entire campus project and dubbed it “The House that UNL Built.” “All we are asking is for someone to say they will purchase a bathtub and be willing to install it,” Stone said. “It’s as simple as that.” Stone said the family is required to have $8,000 to start building. The chapter has about $4,000, with five student organizations con sidering a donation of $500 each. Also, Morrill said, to help cover building costs, Habitat will hold its Shantytown awareness project and fund-raiser Sept. 21-26. “Lincoln-Lancaster County Habitat is waiting for us to say, ‘OK, we’re ready. We can start now,”’ Morrill said. “All we need is the financial security.” Laurie Fraser, Lincoln-Lancaster County Habitat for Humanity vice president, said Habitat has not selected a building site or a fam ily for the UNL chapter’s project. Dubs said when construction on the house begins, volunteers will see and feel the satisfaction. “Until you experience it for the first time - meeting the family, building the house - there’s no way to describe the benefits,” Dubs said. “There are really no tangible benefits but rather emotional ties lasting a lifetime.” UNL Habitat for Humanity will discuss activities for the year at 6 p.m. tonight in the Nebraska Union. Anyone interested in helping Habitat is encouraged to attend. Organizations wishing to volunteer or donate money or materi als for Adopt-A-Job should contact Nelle Balsiger, fund-raising chairwoman, at (402) 436-6072. -
