She always knew Willow would be home

WILLOW -- Past the railroad tracks and the old post office in the heart of Willow a dream is becoming reality for one lucky lady.

The sound of drills and saws can be heard when approaching the construction site. Climbing a ladder and hammering furiously at a stubborn nail on the siding of an unfinished house is a smiling, mop-headed woman. She greets each person who arrives at the site with a grin and a warm handshake.

"Hi, I'm Lida, and this is my home," she says.

Lida Mayo is a recipient of a Habitat for Humanity home in Mat-Su. The Willow home is the eighth in the nonprofit's 10-year history and the first to go to a single person. The circumstances surrounding the home are also slightly different than previous Habitat for Humanity Mat-Su homes, including a three-room home being built in Williwaw Subdivision near Wasilla this year.

Mayo couldn't be happier, though, and she'll tell you this several times. As a volunteer group from Kansas worked recently she gave a tour of the unfinished home.

"This will be my bedroom -- and I am so happy," she said. "I have a wonderful front window -- I am so happy."

Mayo says she was destined to live in Willow. She described how she rented a postal box in Willow, rather than nearer her current home in Houston, because she knew she was moving farther up the Parks Highway.

"Someday I'm gonna live in Willow," Mayo said, recalling what she told friends. "And now I am -- and I am so happy."

The major building portion of the home is scheduled to be finished at the end of next month; volunteers will do the finishing work, such as painting and purchasing and installing appliances, this fall.

Buoyantly going up and down the ladder putting in her required hours working on the home, Mayo said she is thankful for the opportunity to build and buy a Habitat home.

"I prayed for this -- and I am so happy."