Topics Related to Cumberland County
Fayetteville, NC – Clifton Owens II has always dreamed of owning his own home.“I sat back and watched all my cousins and my extended family members purchase homes,” Clifton said. “I felt really ready for that in my life.”Achieving this dream felt daunting to the former resident of Section 8 housing until his realtor told Clifton about the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency’s Homeownership Assistance Program (HAP). The program is designed to help first-time homebuyers purchase a house in hurricane-impacted counties.
Fayetteville, NC – When Mark Holman was a young boy, he and his siblings helped their father plant two pecan trees in the yard of their new home. More than 50 years later, strong winds from Hurricane Matthew and Hurricane Florence nearly toppled both of the trees that had provided a lifetime of nourishment and memories.
Hope Mills, NC – Hurricane Matthew did not destroy Janice Tallman’s house, which was still standing after the storm had passed, but damage from a fallen tree, harsh winds and heavy rain was substantial. Her roof, walls, windows, insulation and more needed significant repairs. Tallman says, “I had no idea how I was going to pay to save my home.”
Fayetteville, NC – Edith Hines first heard about ReBuild NC on the radio after Hurricane Matthew damaged her house, leaving a broken HVAC, rotting wood and soggy insulation.Then Hurricane Florence passed through, causing more damage. She didn’t have enough money to make substantial repairs, so Hines lived without air conditioning or heat — until ReBuild NC stepped in.
Fayetteville, NC – Kelley Clark is a doer. After Hurricane Matthew sent four feet of water through her house, she got her family to safety. When she returned home two months later, she started making repairs. “I didn’t have money to pay anyone and I’m not a handyman, but I watched a lot of YouTube videos,” Clark says. She replaced tiles in her kitchen and bathroom, installed insulation and put up some drywall. Yet damaged floors, bathroom fixtures and window casings remained untouched and unrepaired.
Fayetteville, NC – If anyone had looked for Eneida Green during Hurricane Matthew, they would have found her in one of the safest places in the house. “I hid in the bathtub,” she says. Green notes the irony that she stayed dry in the tub, while her home’s insulation, ceilings and floors got soaked. “Shingles had shifted on the roof, letting water fall in.”