An Ethiopian family living in America is about to experience what it means to have a home; Habitat for Humanity for Central Arizona, the city of Peoria and Arizona Public Service (APS) representatives joined forces over the weekend to help the family.

About 10 years ago, Selamawit Abdi and her family moved to the United States. After a while, Abdi began to feel that the area where they were living was not the best fit for her family's lifestyle, and that it was not a safe enough location to raise a family. Abdi contacted Habitat for Humanity and requested their aid in building a new future.

Through the help of 20 volunteers, construction on the home in Peoria began over the weekend. The completion date will be in approximately four months.

“All I can do today is thank the sponsors for giving my family and I the opportunity to own our own house. It means so much to us; I cannot thank everyone involved enough," Abdi said.

APS has donated almost 5,000 hours of time to Habitat for Humanity since their partnering in 1997.

“With each home built by Habitat for Humanity volunteers, a family like the Abdis has a chance to realize the American dream, and our community becomes that much stronger,” Sue Kidd, APS general manager for transmission and distribution engineering and a Habitat for Humanity of Central Arizona board member, said.