Every home has a story, and as Habitat SKKC celebrates our 40th anniversary in 2026, we’re excited to share the stories that have shaped the past four decades. Throughout the year, we’ll be highlighting legacy family stories from across our history – stories of partnership, resilience, and hope that remind us why this work matters.
Joanne W. remembers the dinner from her first night in her Habitat home. After a long day of unpacking boxes, no furniture set up and no cutlery in sight, she and her three kids ate a simple meal from the taco truck at the end of the block. The food itself, quesadillas for the kids and a burrito for Joanne, was delicious, but what Joanne recalls most about the family’s first meal there was a feeling of peace and relief at finally being home.
Joanne’s life looks a lot different than it did when she moved into her three-bedroom home in Overlake in 2018, and much different than she would have imagined twenty years ago. The struggles and triumphs that she and her children have experienced led her to a place she now refers to as her “forever home.”
Joanne grew up on Mercer Island and stayed local for higher education: a BA in business from the University of Washington and an MBA from Seattle University. She married, had a well-paying career in sales and marketing, moved to the Bay Area and back and eventually bought a house in Bellevue with her then husband. Her life shifted course when she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) in her late twenties and even more so when her husband left her soon after their third child was born.
After the divorce, she and her kids moved into a rental home. After a number of years there, the house was falling apart: a leaking roof, no heat because the furnace broke, and black mold in the walls. The rental home was sold to a builder who was planning to tear it down and build a new house. The rent was about 90% of Joanne’s income and with her spousal support having ended, she could no longer afford to live there.
Right before they were forced to move out in 2017, her caseworker at the social services agency Hopelink, told her that even with her limited disability income she would probably qualify to purchase a home from Habitat for Humanity. They were homeless for nine months before moving into their Habitat home in 2018, sleeping in motels, crashing at their relatives’ homes, and even camping.
“My kids’ anxiety was super high when we didn’t have stable housing, and maybe that was partially my fault. They could sense my anxiety over not knowing where I was going to live,” Joanne explains.
Once the family settled in, Joanne noticed a change in her kids right away: “They were happy to have their own beds and their own place to call home. Having that stability was so important for them.”
Celebrating birthdays and holidays in their Habitat home was integral to returning to a sense of normalcy. The year before, when they were experiencing homelessness, they didn’t have a Christmas tree. They celebrated at Joanne’s sister’s house, but it wasn’t the same as previous holidays. During the first year in their new house, they celebrated Christmas at home with their gifts under the tree. This celebratory feeling extended to other holidays: Joanne’s children love Halloween and started decorating for it in August that year.
During that memorable first year, the family adopted a dog, Daisy. They helped a family out that wasn’t able to keep Daisy in their apartment because dogs weren’t allowed. Joanne adds, “We were thrilled to offer Daisy a safe home full of love and relieved that we didn’t have to obey any landlord rules that said, ‘No Pets.’”
In addition to the fun activities that came with homeownership, Joanne focused on some of the important work too: Knowing that her children’s disabilities might cause frustrations for her neighbors because they couldn’t follow rules easily, she immediately got involved in the HOA. She quickly became HOA president, a position she held for several years.
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When they first moved into their home, her children filled it with chatter and activity. Now that her two oldest kids have moved out, she’s easing into the transition to a quieter home. Though she’s approaching an empty nest, the seven years she has spent in this home so far are filled with memories to keep her company even as her children leave one by one in search of their first homes.
Her oldest son, now 22, has cerebral palsy and autism. He is living in a group home that provides him with community and 24/7 care. It’s close enough that Joanne can visit him frequently. Her second son, age 20, now works at an Amazon warehouse and has moved into his first apartment in Seattle. Her youngest, a daughter, is at home and finishing high school. In 2025, she was one of only three kids in Bellevue awarded a scholarship from the city for a full ride to any public college in Washington. She wants to be a costume designer and plans to enroll at Lake Washington Technical College and eventually the Seattle Fashion Academy.
After a transitional year in which her two sons moved out and her father passed away, Joanne can’t help but think of the future and what she’ll leave behind: “I want to pass this home to my daughter so she can have stable housing as well, and not have to go through what I went through. I was looking to buy a home when I was 25 and I could afford a home at that time with my job. Not today, unless you have a million dollars sitting in the bank. How do people afford a place to live? My hope for the future is to have security for my kids.”
The past shaped Joanne into the woman she is today, and her kids’ future feels full of hope. Here in the now, Joanne is content to sit outside on her patio—her favorite place at home—and enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning. It’s a simple pleasure, but one that she enjoys fully. After years of hardship that tested her resiliency, everyday moments like a meal with her kids or a quiet moment to herself are well-deserved celebrations.
Click below to watch Joanne featured in our 2019 Beyond the Build Luncheon video.