Ability to Plan for the Future In 2004, Jim DePierro was living with roommates and then at his Mom’s house and was ready for a change. He was a recent graduate from the University of Vermont working several jobs, but his pay wasn’t enough to cover the costs of owning a car, paying insurance and […]
Getting on a Better Pathway By necessity, Katiesha Soth and her family bounced around a lot – living unhoused made them always looking out for a place that would offer an opportunity for stability in their lives, and especially, a home. The family of six had spent a few years without a home, often with […]
From Hardship to Housing with a Little Help Nicole Hawley is no stranger to hardship. Born in Morrisville and growing up in central Vermont her family always figured out how to make ends meet, sometime depending on public assistance programs when needed. It’s the reality for many Vermont families without a lot of resources and […]
A New Sense of Home It’s impossible not to feel welcome inside Vladimir Bullón and Greg Chire’s new shared equity condo at Bay Ridge in Shelburne. The living space is decorated with family pictures and furniture that the couple tracked down from secondhand shops and Facebook marketplace. Their sixth month old puppy Willow follows visitors […]
I Felt Like I Was Home Almost 40 years ago, Suzie McKenzie moved from California back to her hometown of Burlington, Vermont, with her 7-year-old daughter. She lived with her mom and was looking for a place to live when her sister-in-law, who rented from Champlain Housing Trust, suggested Suzie move into her apartment since […]
Putting the “Share” into Shared Equity Homeownership The day Dylan and Rebecca Merrifox sold their home was bittersweet. Selling the home, which is part of Champlain Housing Trust’s shared equity program, meant saying goodbye to a special place for their young family – even as they were excited for their next step. “It really was […]
This is What Stability Looks Like Hannah Pickett spoke at Champlain Housing Trust’s annual Cornerstone Luncheon in November 2024, a fundraising event attended by about 300 guests. She also spoke at Vermont Housing & Conservation Coalition’s Legislative Day at the State House in February 2025. Here are her remarks. Good afternoon and thank you for […]
Don’t Let the Past Define Your Future “One thing I remember about living in the shelter was I taught myself how to snap my fingers,” recalled Josslyn McKenna. She, her parents, and her sister had become homeless when she was five. Now 17 and a junior at Essex High School – and at home at Champlain […]
Everything I Wanted Not too long ago, Laura Allyn felt stuck. But now, sitting in her one-bedroom home in Burlington, surrounded by family pictures and paintings – many of them done by her mother – Laura explains how this welcoming home once seemed so out of reach for her. “It was a very dark time. […]
A Home with a Lake View Late in 2019, Rose and Michael Jerome toured a Champlain Housing Trust apartment on King Street in Burlington. After years spent bouncing from one place to another, they walked into the vacant 4th floor apartment at 88 King Street ready to find a home they could stay in […]
My Journey to Homeownership & CHT Board Service Issouf Ouattara is a Champlain Housing Trust Board member and shared equity homeowner who wrote and shared the following remarks at our fundraiser luncheon in November 2023. Good afternoon, everyone! My name is Issouf Ouattara, and I am a CHT Board member. I work at UVM as […]
A Stable Home Photos courtesy of Glenn Russell Before moving into her new apartment in Williston, Michelle Lucas had been without housing for more than four years. She bounced between motels rooms funded by the State or friends’ homes but couldn’t find stability – especially hard as she struggled with multiple health challenges ranging from […]
