Tavell Davidson grew up in an Urbana neighborhood, attended Urbana schools, and hopes to build her new Habitat home with volunteers in Urbana. “I just love Urbana, it’s a nice place to raise my girls, (12 and 15) and I feel like it is just the right size community for me. My extended family lives within 6 blocks of one another, and I want to keep my family close by if I can.”
Tavell discovered Habitat’s work first-hand. She watched as Habitat construction projects started taking over many of the rundown homes in her current Urbana neighborhood. “The abandoned homes were being bull-dozed to make way for new Habitat homes. When all the volunteers showed up for Habitat, it was heartwarming to see that so many cared. They gave their time to make a real difference in our neighborhood. I knew I wanted our family to be a part of that, so I applied and got involved as soon as I could.”
A big part of Tavell’s support system is her “work” family. For the past three years Tavell has worked as a Crew Chief for ServePro in Urbana. “I love the demolition work. My team comes into remove unsafe and hazardous items from a house that has been damaged from water, fire or storms. We demolish and clean up. We rarely get to rebuild or repair. Many of my co-workers will be volunteering to help me build my home. I can’t wait to be building– instead of tearing down parts of a home. It will be a whole new experience!”
Finally Tavell adds, “Habitat has given me hope. I see that there is still “good” out there in the world trying to change things, and that makes me hopeful. The volunteers will be changing our lives in ways we can’t even know. With so much division in the world –this opportunity with Habitat really feels different, she says. I can’t wait to start building for our future.”