On April 16, volunteers form Marathon Petroleum’s Galveston Bay refinery teamed up with Bay Area Habitat for Humanity Houston (BAHFH) to build a new home for Galveston County resident April Laijas.
“As a single mom watching home prices always going up, I wasn’t sure if this day would ever be possible,” said Laijas. “I am beyond excited to start making memories with my girls that we will cherish for years to come.”
The path to her new reality was made possible through the BAHFH, with support from local businesses like Marathon Petroleum’s Galveston Bay refinery, a sponsor of the project. Families interested in purchasing a home through BAHFH must meet certain criteria. Members of the household are required to give 300 hours of “sweat equity” toward building the home as well as other Habitat homes and attend specific financial budgeting and homeownership courses.
“From start to finish, this has been such a rewarding process to be involved in,” said vice president of refining Dave Leaver. “It’s an incredible feeling to know our people played a role in helping to make this family’s dream come true.”
About a dozen employee volunteers from Marathon Petroleum took part in construction of the three-bedroom home, which broke ground in late 2023. Refinery maintenance foreman Cory Bush took it a step farther by donating a washer and dryer to Laijas and her family.
“So many people in our community came together to support this deserving mom and her two girls,” Bush said. “To see the smiles on their faces at the dedication event was such a powerful moment to witness and something I will never forget.”
This marked the 172nd home dedicated by BAHFH since the non-profit was founded in 1991.
“We are so grateful to all who came together to build this beautiful home,” said Megan Scheffer, executive director of Bay Area Habitat for Humanity Houston. “Every nail, every hand and every dollar helped turn April’s dream of homeownership into reality, and we could not have done this without you.”
