You Made Elile’s Dream Come True
Elile (uh-LEE-luh) Adams is a single mother who works full time and is going to school full time for her Bachelor’s degree. Her daughter, Zooey, is 8 years old.
Elile and Zooey have lived in Whatcom County all their lives, mostly on the Nooksack reservation in rented tribal housing and with family members. Elile shared that she lived with a lot of stress and anxiety when she lived in tribal housing.
Elile is going through disenrollment from the Nooksack Tribe. Beginning back in 2012, “they decided in Nooksack tribe to disenroll 306 tribal members. And that is my entire family,” Elile explained. Her sister, Cathalina, was recently evicted. They’ve both been involved in the court process in fighting the disenrollment. Now Elile plans to study and work in tribal law, as she said, “That’s what I’m driven to and that’s my spark.”
After some Covid supports ended, Elile needed to pay more for rent and began looking for a place to call her own. Cathalina had applied for KulshanCLT’s homebuying program (read her story here), and “next thing you know I was submitting my application,” said Elile. With “renting you’re never going to own and it’s just constantly money just down the drain.”
Still Can’t Believe It’s Real
During the application and mortgage approval process, Elile never really thought it would happen. “Because usually it’s like, ‘Oh no, you’ve been denied, you’re going to have to go another route,’” she said. It wasn’t until the keys were in her hand that it started feeling real. “I’m still in shock about it.”
“I love the fact that [this house is] mine. It’s something that I’ve always wanted, to own a place,” Elile added. And Zooey, “loves having a place calling her own.” Elile is grateful for the sense of security their home provides Zooey, as they won’t be moving anytime soon.
The Impossible Made Possible
With the income bracket she’s in, Elile explained that it would have taken her at least 20 years to save up and buy a home. She said you’d never believe she would be able to afford to buy a home; “That’s just impossible, except for going through Kulshan.”
“I love the program more because of what Kulshan did for my sister and I,” shared Elile. After her sister got the eviction notice, KulshanCLT staff worked to get her keys to her new home before closing. “They didn’t have to do this… We’re putting so much faith into this program and that little sense of humanity right there just shows what kind of program this is. I love it.”
Owning a home, “Is something that I can give my daughter so she doesn’t have to worry when she gets older,” shared Elile.
“Owning my own home is a dream come true!”
Your support made it possible for Elile and Zooey to own their beautiful, new home at a price they can afford. Thank you!
