Elaine and Grant: Building a Future, Rooted in Milwaukee

Elaine and Grant: Building a Future, Rooted in Milwaukee

Since before they met, Elaine and Grant have been dedicated to giving back to the community. Eight years ago, they both moved to Milwaukee to serve as AmeriCorps members with an education focused nonprofit. Less than a year later, they were married and Milwaukee has been home ever since.

Today, they live in the Riverwest neighborhood with their two daughters. Grant is currently a middle school math teacher and Elaine is pursuing her graduate degree. Elaine and Grant are deeply invested in the Milwaukee community and have wanted to put down permanent roots of their own for years.

“In homeownership I’m going to feel a higher sense of investment and pride in a neighborhood that’s ours,” Grant said. 

Homeownership has been a long-standing goal, but one that often felt out of reach

“We’ve wanted to be homeowners for a long time,” Grant said. “It felt like an impossible dream.”

Due to their time with AmeriCorps, Elaine and Grant were familiar with Habitat for Humanity. They didn’t think they would qualify until a Facebook post made them think otherwise. 

“Once I realized we qualified, we applied within days,” Elaine said.

An employee from FRED, the sponsor of Elaine and Grant’s home, volunteering on site

Now, in partnership with Milwaukee Habitat for Humanity, Elaine and Grant are building a brand-new home for their family. Their new home is being built in the Harambee neighborhood, a place that Elaine and Grant know and love.

“When we heard Habitat was building in Harambee, we were like we have friends here,” Elaine said. “We don’t have to move far to [get out of our rental]. We are so close to everyone we love.” 

For their family, homeownership means stability, and for Grant, it’s especially meaningful.

“I grew up as a missionary abroad. I grew up in Indonesia,” Grant said. “So the idea of a stable location that I can invest in for a long time, it’s attractive. I wanted it.”

“This is home for the kids,” Elaine added. “Grant didn’t really have that. Our kids can be like ‘this is our home.’”

Beyond stability, they are seeking safety for their daughters, something they haven’t always had in rentals.

“We test our kids for lead every year,” Elaine said. “I don’t think they can conceptualize the environmental hazard, but they will be healthier [in the Habitat home.]”

Partnering with Milwaukee Habitat has also deepened their connection to Milwaukee’s nonprofit community, something that is important to them.

“Both of us in terms of professional goals are service oriented,” Elaine said. “Milwaukee is a generous community and is community oriented. It feels cool to be on the participant end of these programs since being a member of the AmeriCorps program and giving to other participants in programs. We’ve heard about the Milwaukee Habitat program and we know people who have been partner families. It feels really part of the Milwaukee non-profit scene, in a way that we trust…We want to be really good stewards. It’s a financial commitment from us. So many people generously give to make it happen. We want to take care of that generosity.”

Elaine and Grant are excited to roll up their sleeves and put in their sweat equity hours, which are Habitat’s unique alternative to a traditional down payment. During sweat equity hours, future homebuyers spend time on the build site building their home or volunteering in our Habitat ReStores.

“It’s kind of the perfect mix,” Grant said. “We’re not in charge or have to plan any of the home build. At the end there is a defined outcome that the process produces. There is a finite amount of tasks and hours. As we chip away at them, we are getting closer to the final product.”

As Elaine and Grant get closer to moving into their new home, they are thrilled to further immerse themselves in the Milwaukee community.

“Our house will be our piece of the community network,” Grant said. “It’s going to be huge, becoming a part of the tapestry of Milwaukee.”

As a family who is deeply invested in the Milwaukee community, Elaine and Grant are ready to put down roots, build a home for their children, and continue to give back to the city they love.