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Future Shines bright with new home

By Jonathan Fernandez For Clay Today
Posted 2/20/19

GREEN COVE SPRINGS – She stood near the doorway of her new home with her hands clasped together – trying, but failing, to keep them from trembling. With tears streaming down her face, Lorrie …

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Future Shines bright with new home


Posted

GREEN COVE SPRINGS – She stood near the doorway of her new home with her hands clasped together – trying, but failing, to keep them from trembling. With tears streaming down her face, Lorrie Shine was a figure overwhelmed with emotions.

For the first time in her adult life, the grandmother of seven finally has a place to call home, thanks to the continued efforts by Habitat for Humanity to provide better standards of living in Clay County.

“I have lived in apartments, I have rented houses, but I have never actually felt at home. Whenever a landlord sold the house, I would be forced to move. Over the last 34 years, I have had to move about 10 times,” the 49-year-old said during the Habitat home dedication event in Green Cove Springs on Feb. 15.

“I never had that stability that I always wanted for myself and my children...the stability that comes with owning your own home.”

Sometime in 2011, Shine sent the last of her four children off to college. Just when she thought her deed as a parent was settled, Shine’s eldest daughter Blaire “fell onto some hard times.”

As she struggled to wriggle herself out of a web of endless troubles, Blaire had to resort to her mother to care for two of her four young children, Re’Nasja and Rashad, who, at that time, were six and two years old respectively.

Shine was no stranger to the predicaments of a teenage mother, having raised her own children as a 16-year-old herself. Naturally, she felt compelled to help lift her daughter out of the doldrums.

“God gave my grandchildren to me to make sure they were not left by the wayside. I wouldn’t have been able to sleep at night if I had turned the other way,” Shine said.

Eight years later, Blaire is still stringing the scattered pieces of her life together. The 30-year-old is working two jobs to help her afford rent and child support while she keeps in constant contact with her children, including D’Rheah, nine, and Devonne, five, who are under the care of their father.

“Blaire is just not ready to get her kids yet. But God put my grandkids with me for a reason, and that reason is right here,” Lorrie said, pointing to her new four-bedroom, two-bathroom single-story home.

“I’m grateful for them. I find joy in seeing them happy. They are my responsibility, my duty.”

Shine, who works at a printing company in Jacksonville, said the new home was timely for the family, as the grandchildren could now grow in a more conducive environment.

“It is a critical moment for the children, who now have their own rooms. My teenage granddaughter will be able to focus better on her school work. The boy is happy because he can finally have friends over and play in our very own backyard,” Shine said.

After being confined to an apartment home for so long, Shine is excited to get working on her backyard, too.

“I am looking forward to doing my yard ... I love gardening. I also enjoy cookouts with my family. It is all about sharing the love that people have given me. A lot of my family members live in and around this area, I am sure they will be swinging by over here now,” she said with a laugh.

Despite already owning a home, Shine’s work with Habitat for Humanity is far from done. She insisted she would continue volunteering with the organization, to which she was “eternally indebted.”

“I want to help because I would not have been able to do this without other people. So, who am I to deny those in need? It is great joy to see people walking around their homes just like how I am doing right now,” she added.

Clay County Habitat for Humanity executive director Carolyn Edwards described Shine “exceptional” and said she was always willing to go “above and beyond.”

Habitat for Humanity applicants are required to record at least 300 hours for future single homeowners and 500 hours for couples of sweat equity, in addition to a modest down payment of $1,100. Shine, however, was willing to go that extra mile.

“Shine has gone well over what was required, putting in slightly more than 500 hours. This lady has jumped in and done whatever we have asked of her - from working on homes of others to working on her own home.

“She has never shied away from her duty. She has done everything extremely well, and with joy in her heart. It was a pleasure working with her because of her gratitude,” Edwards said.

Edwards, who has been at Clay Habitat since 2008, has helped scores of families squeeze out of squalid living conditions and get proper roofs over their heads.

Over Clay Habitat’s 42-year history, the organization has constructed 106 homes in Green Cove Springs on various sites, totaling 166 houses in Clay County alone.

“The stories of each of these families are different but they share a similarity – they are trying to get out of a substandard living situation. I am just very happy to be part of this organization that allows them this opportunity for a better standard of living. We want to help each family obtain an affordable and a safe place to live in,” she said.

With another five Habitat homes in the pipeline for the year in the Clay County area, Edwards said the project would not have been a success without the continued community support.

“Our biggest challenge is funding. That is why it is important to recognize those who do help us,” she said, naming Publix Supermarket Charities, Orange Park Furniture, Penney Retirement Community and the City of Green Cove as some of the sponsors.