The post YOLANDA, MUTUAL HOUSING ON THE GREENWAY appeared first on Blog.

The post MARIBEL AND HECTOR, MUTUAL HOUSING AT SPRING LAKE PHASE 2 appeared first on Blog.

The post JOSE AND ALICIA, MUTUAL HOUSING AT SPRING LAKE PHASE 2 appeared first on Blog.

The post CHARLES, MUTUAL HOUSING AT RIVER GARDEN appeared first on Blog.

–Manuel Garcia

I have been in California since the death of President Kennedy in 1963. I was 18 years old when I first got here. I come from a family of 11 in Mexico. I have worked in a lot of places. I moved to Woodland around 1978 and have lived here for the majority of my life.

The time I spent in Hughson, I lived in the field. We were 70 men working for a contractor, all of us were undocumented. All those seven years I spent in Hughson we lived in the field. We moved from one field to another. We picked a lot of grapes. The contractor had a roll up mattress and a little blanket for us. Sometimes it rained and I would place a plastic cover of the grape vines so I would not get wet.

When I finally moved to Lodi, they had five little trailers for us. It was four of us in each trailer. Everything was good. I worked trimming the grape vines, peaches, and apricots. I trimmed grape vines in Lodi for seven years. We had the hoe and no other tools to work with. I knew how to work the fields, so that is what I did and what I liked.

Here in Woodland I was picking tomatoes, irrigating, driving tractors, and working other machinery. Working in irrigation was tough. Our legs would get soaked with water 3 times a day. That is a cause for the leg pain we have now and lack of balance.

My wife was a bus driver for the school and then for the city. Her name was Ester Flores. When I married my wife, my life changed completely. She helped me receive my green card. I was able to help my family in Mexico and send them money. We lived on California Street here in Woodland for 15 years. We lived well. In this area there was a car accident one time. My wife was in that car accident, she was taken to the emergency room. She was not well after the car accident. My wife wouldn’t talk. Then when we moved to New Mexico she had a stroke and died.

Our goddaughter, Angelica, suggested I move back to Woodland. I lived with Angelica for one month, then I moved with my brother and his family in Sacramento. That is when Angelica found out about Spring Lake.

When I got the keys to the apartment in Spring Lake my brothers and Angelica brought me chairs, couches, a bed, and kitchen ware. I feel calmer and very comfortable.

The post MANUEL, MUTUAL HOUSING AT SPRING LAKE PHASE 2 appeared first on Blog.

Jasmine Duong is a youth leader at Mutual Housing at Lemon Hill. This Summer she participated in a youth internship program with Alchemist CDC in partnership with Mutual Housing California. She was part of an effort to educate the broader community about the CalFresh program and maximize their benefits through Farmers Market matching incentives. “Now,” she said “I want to help more families with food access.”

“This year I’ve been more involved in my community than I had ever been. I’ve been using my voice to support mutual housing without realizing it. Mutual Housing stands out because of the community feel. I feel like although I’m not close with all the residents, I feel like my voice is heard and that they care. Promoting this community development model would solve many social issues that happen in a society such as racism, discrimination, inequity.”

Click to hear more of our resident voices…

The post JASMINE, MUTUAL HOUSING AT LEMON HILL appeared first on Blog.

I have worked at a local nut company for eight years sorting almonds. The almonds pass through a moving band, and we have to remove the leaves and other natural waste that it comes with. I work outside, but it is covered. During the winter it is very cold and during the summer it is very hot. It is not conditioned for us. I have also worked in warehouses where I would package electronic devices. I worked long hours, nine to ten hours a day. I would spend the whole day in the warehouse. I have lived in the United States for 24 years.

I found out about Mutual Housing through a neighbor that lived in my old apartment complex. She moved here and she told me about it. I first lived with my sister, in an apartment here in Woodland. I lived with her family, her husband and her kids. I lived there for one year. The following year I got married with the father of my daughter. I moved in with him. The apartment was better and it was in a good area. Later, he left my daughter and me for another woman. I returned to that same apartment with my sister. Well, I have not remarried since then. I dedicated myself to my daughter.

I stayed with my sister again for over a year. She had moved to a two-bedroom unit. I asked the manager to allow me to rent a one-bedroom unit. I moved into that one-bedroom apartment in 2001. I was there until I moved to Spring Lake.

Before, the apartment owners were more humane. They charged us less for rent. But lately, the property owners are taking advantage. We all worked and they mostly took everything we earned for rent. It was too much for the conditions – it was an abuse. Once, they were fixing the second-floor apartment. I lived on the first floor. When they damaged something in the bathroom upstairs, the roof in my apartment was dripping water from the top bathroom. I would report the damage and they would ignore me. I went a whole week with a flooded bathroom. Here in California, the high rents are an abuse. Most of our paycheck goes towards rent. We were left with little to nothing for the rest of our expenses, car payments, groceries.

I had been paying $860 for a one-bedroom. There was going to be another increase in June to $1,100. That was more than my paycheck. I lived too tense, always worrying about the rent payments. It did not allow me to think about the future. I lived in those apartments until I moved here, to Spring Lake. It’s been a great relief for me. It’s very peaceful. I feel heard with management. I feel more secure. Now I pay $677 per month.

The post MARINA, MUTUAL HOUSING AT SPRING LAKE PHASE 2 appeared first on Blog.

Andrea Noble is a resident board member living at Mutual Housing on the Greenway in South Sacramento. From the beginning stages of Mutual Housing California’s partnership with Housing California’s Residents United Network (RUN), Andrea has consistently and fiercely advocated for affordable housing. Despite her full plate as a grandmother and care provider for three grandchildren, she has participated in several “lobby days”, affordable housing advocacy training, and other RUN activities throughout California and Oregon.

Recalling life before Mutual Housing, “For more than a year my kids and I stayed at some motels in the neighborhood we were used to. We also couch surfed as they say but, always with the everpresent dread of invading others home spaces.”

And after living stably at Mutual Housing on the Greenway, “My son’s grades improved, their teachers started telling me they were developing a more positive rapport, and before you knew it they were 18 and graduated.”

Click to hear more of our resident voices…

The post ANDREA, MUTUAL HOUSING ON THE GREENWAY appeared first on Blog.

Before not too long, I got word that my apartment was ready. Just before the news, I also learned of my sister’s passing, making the weight of homelessness particularly heavy. I managed to gather my belongings and get on a bus headed to North Highlands.

I remember walking to my front door, and hearing the property manager, say, “Here are your keys. I want you to open your front door for the first time.” I was so happy! I had been through several non-permanent housing communities, and this was different. THIS was my own home, and I was being treated with respect. I remember opening the door, seeing a brand new bed, a new comforter, and things for my kitchen.  It was all set up!  After another week or two and some difficult experiences with my sister’s memorial, my niece Sherri got keys for her nearby apartment as well.

Living here has been a beautiful change for me.  I don’t have to deal with the elements.  My health challenges are easier to manage and I am part of a community that watches out for one another. I like keeping busy, working toward goals, and have been able to stop drinking.  I like my friends and the staff here, and I enjoy all the activities available, because life had shown me that idle hands can get people in trouble. I have been able to REALLY live life and experience a true home at Mutual Housing at the Highlands.

The post LESLIE, MUTUAL HOUSING AT THE HIGHLANDS appeared first on Blog.

My transformation started when we moved to Glen Ellen Mutual Housing Community, pregnant with our second child. We experienced a whole new level of freedom at Glen Ellen. I enjoyed having the company and support of all my neighbors during my second pregnancy, something I didn’t have with my first. I also enjoyed not having to do all the chores and tasks that the other programs made me do in order to keep a roof over my head.

I’m involved in my Glen Ellen Mutual Housing Community because I want to, not because I have to do. I like attending the meetings because we discuss events and issues that pertain to our community. I also started volunteering because of my children. Then I started to see that volunteering could help me pave a way out of my bad background, and could lead to a better life for me and my family.

The Glen Ellen Mutual Housing community organizers, Crystal and Marena, along with property managers, Bonnie and Tara, have helped me build confidence and self-esteem by being welcoming and nice to me. Also, by going to annual celebrations and hearing other women talk about what Mutual Housing has done for them, it has helped keep my eyes open and gives me great hope for the future.

Living at Mutual Housing California has given me the freedom and confidence to strive after my dreams.

More Resident Voices>>

The post MEAGHAN, GLEN ELLEN MUTUAL HOUSING COMMUNITY appeared first on Blog.