Lillian's Story

Lillian Dye is the homeowner-partner for the 2009 Women Build scheduled for completion May 10, 2009: Mother’s Day. This is her story.

Growing up the daughter of a sharecropper in 1950’s Iredell County, life wasn't’t easy for Lillian Dye. She remembers long days in the fields of northern Iredell County planting corn, picking cotton and tobacco in the heat of the summer, while dreaming of going to school like the other kids and having a nice dress to wear to Sunday School. While other kids roamed the pastures and played freely, Lillian and her family worked; sometimes just for clothes and shoes for the coming winter or food for their plates. There was plenty of love in her family that included thirteen children; there just were not a lot of things. At Christmas, gifts were little more than hard candy and toys made of thread spools crafted by her oldest brother.

The life of a sharecropper is a transient one. Moving from farm to farm and town to town, with little connection to those around you makes one yearn for roots. Lillian says she never felt at home anywhere, always knowing that at some point she would have to leave. Even when she got married, job changes necessitated frequent moves. “As long as I can remember, I have wanted a place to call my own,” Lillian added. “Somewhere I know no one can make me leave.”

Having raised seven children and helped raise twenty-one “grand babies” and seven “great-grandbabies” while working almost every year of her 65 years on earth, Lillian decided it was time to do something for her. In 2003, she re enrolled in school and earned her high school diploma, something she had wanted to do since 1964. In late 2007, she applied to be a Habitat homeowner. The requirements of the program to work on the houses of others and other volunteer hours did not deter Lillian. By working after hours and on weekends, Lillian quickly earned her spot as a prospective homeowner.

 

In August 2008, Lillian was chosen as the partner for the Women Build. She admits to being a “bit nervous” about the responsibilities of her new home, but knows that she will be successful. Lillian says that having so many people help her out –over 300 women have signed up to help on her home-reminds her that there are “lots of good people in the world” and that “God is good”. She says it makes her think of her sixth grade teacher who gave her shoes when she was cold and how being the recipient of that simple act of kindness made her feel.

Lillian looks forward to the time where she can have her family to her new home for a cookout. Most of all, she says that she looks forward to being somewhere she can relax and truly know that she is home.