Posted Wednesday, June 17, 2020 9:50 am

By DANIEL GUY

With the cutting of a ribbon, Sheila Smith recently celebrated her new home in Habitat for Humanity of Cleveland's Victory Cove subdivision. 

Her home is the 140th Habitat home built in Bradley County and is named the Legacy of Faith Build home. 

Smith bought her first home — a “fixer-upper” with grass up to her waist and more than 20 bags of garbage littering the lawn — when her now-adult children were still growing up.

She worked “12 hours a day in a carpet mill,” she said, “12 hours a night” at home to transform that house into a home.

“I just did what I had to do to survive and take care of my kids, working 48 hours a week, and sometimes it was 72 (hours),” Smith said.

She most recently lived in an apartment complex with mold issues, a broken refrigerator, little space and noisy neighbors. However, she saw the fruits of her labor during a dedication ceremony for her new home at Victory Cove. 

Speaking about the volunteer homebuilders, Tammy Johnson, Habitat for Humanity of Cleveland executive director said, "We literally take many, many, many people and wrap arms of love around our habitat homeowners."

Smith is full of life, laughter and ambition. She loves spending time with family including her grown children — a daughter, Stephanie, and son, Russell —  and her 12-year-old grandson, Ethan, who led the dedication prayer at the dedication.

She applied to Habitat in November of 2018 in hopes of bettering her life and changing her living situation. She worked very hard to complete the 300 sweat equity hours and to pay off debt. 

Smith dreams of the day where she will finally have a beautifully decorated "forever home" with a lovely yard of flowers, backyard cookouts, corn hole games with family and friends and peace all around. 

Speaking about the apartment complex she was living in, Smith said, “Don’t get me wrong, it’s a fine place to live, but I have no yard. All I have is concrete, and my yard has always been my special place.”

She also looks forward to making meals in her own oven.

“I love flowers, and I love a vegetable garden where I can go out and pick some tomatoes and lettuce, okra and squash and just prepare a meal for my family,” Smith said. 

“More than making meals, I hope to make warm, lasting memories to pass on to my family and all who visit,” she added. “My grandson and I will be able to play in a yard together, plant flowers and watch them grow for years to come. We are so excited, and I am truly blessed. It’s been a journey.”

A little more than a few weeks from completing her home, she is excited about the prospect of moving in and taking care of her home, no longer a displaced flower looking for a garden.

“It will be clean, and it will be cherished,” Smith said. 

She said she is blessed with a strong core of friends, including Sam and Judy of South Pittsburgh, whom she has known for over 40 years, and her dear friend, Leon.

Sponsors for the Legacy of Faith Build include: Alba Foundation, Anatole Exteriors, Bank of Cleveland, Barry Boettner, Broad Street UMC Endowment, City of Cleveland Community Development Block Grant, Community Foundation of Cleveland and Bradley County, David and Ellen Smith, Don Rollens Legacy Fund, Federal Home Loan Bank of Cincinnati, First United Methodist Church, Fitzgerald Family Foundation, Gary White, Habitat Family Fundraiser, Habitat for Humanity of Tennessee, Howling Cow Community Commitment Fund, Julian Sullivan and Tennessee Housing Development Agency. 

Habitat for Humanity of Cleveland seeks to “put God’s love into action by bringing people together to build and repair homes, communities and hope.”

For more information about Habitat for Humanity of Cleveland, visit www.habitatofcleveland.org.