“You get the tunnel vision of ‘What am I going to do this week? Are we going to make rent? He says. “So you don’t dream a lot you don’t think about what your five-year plan is. It’s a very closed and short-term vision because it’s about necessity.”
It wasn’t until Frederick’s parents became owners of their own home through what is now Saginaw-Shiawassee Habitat for Humanity that the family finally found the freedom to dream, to plan and to think outside of the moving boxes.
“Suddenly, Habitat took away one of the many key stress points of poverty." 
Michigan State Representative Ben Frederick volunteers with Habitat.
“One of my most powerful memories is from right after we moved in to our Habitat house,” Frederick says. “I went out to the curb, and we threw the boxes away.”

After the storm, Oliwia’s parents were able to find the resources to replace the roof and rebuild the first floor, but so much more needed to be done. “Then I found information on the internet about Habitat for Humanity,” says Zofia, Oliwia’s mom. “The response from Habitat was very swift.”
Habitat Poland has helped the family, providing loans to cover construction costs and hosting Global Village volunteer teams to help with the building. Oliwia loved painting pictures in the concrete with some of the volunteers. She remembers Rebecca from Texas, who sent the family a map of Texas. When it was time for the volunteers to go, they all did the good-bye dance, also known as the hokey pokey. “Even Dad, even though he never weeps, he was crying,” Oliwia says.She thinks about all of the love that has been poured into this house, the one that will offer her a room with a view. “I have a good feeling about it.”