Jamila Jami saw the walls of her new house go up on Saturday, Jan. 8. "If it wasn't so cold, she'd be jumping up and down," said Homaira Jami, her daughter, translating Jamila's remarks.
The Jamis were one of three families on hand to watch and help as volunteers from Habitat for Humanity built two new houses in the Briarwood Trace subdivision, just across Nutley Street from the Vienna/Fairfax Metro station.
The houses were the first single-family, detached, affordable dwelling units to be built under Fairfax County's Affordable Dwelling Unit program. "We started talking about this in 2001," said Supervisor Linda Smyth (D-Providence). "Here we are in 2005, and they're getting built."
These houses are the 48th and 49th built in Northern Virginia, said Robin Sparks of Habitat for Humanity. House No. 50 is also set to be built in the same development, and Habitat for Humanity expects to break ground on it in February.
For more information about Habitat for Humanity, or to make a donation or volunteer, visit www.hfhnv.org.