Her Own Two Feet

KRISTIN BAUER

Tabitha Crabtree, a single mother of three, has lived in an apartment complex run by the Lorain Metropolitan Housing Complex for eleven years. Tabitha first moved to Wilkes Villa when she was pregnant with her first child, and never thought she would stay. Although Wilkes Villa was the best place for her at the time, throughout the years, while not making nearly enough to support a family of four, Tabitha found herself stuck in what many call the "projects." With an autistic son, mounting doctors' bills, and the cost of living, Tabitha said, "I was working so we could be OK today."

KRISTIN BAUER

In all the excitement occurring around him, Dillon lays down on his mattress and kicks it in protest of moving. Dillon is upset to see all of his things leave the room he has lived in for years to be packed away. Although he knows he will be moving to a new home later that day, Dillon is still upset. Dillon's autism has made this move especially difficult, and throughout the afternoon on moving day, he needed reassurance things were going to be ok.

KRISTIN BAUER

Dillon lost his left shoe during packing and proceeded to hop on foot while his family packed and carried boxes around him for the duration of the afternoon.

KRISTIN BAUER

Tabitha picked up a pack of cigarettes and went outside in an attempt to calm her nerves from the stress of the move. She speaks to her son, Scott, 10, about what life will be like in their new home after they are moved in. Tabitha mentioned she does not let her children play outside at the nearby playground at Wilkes Villa. She said her eldest son Scott was punched in the face by another kid at the playground, and she is excited her children will be able to go out and play like other children once they move.

KRISTIN BAUER

Tabitha Crabtree and her sons Scott, 10, and Dillon, 6, stand outside their Wilkes Villa home preparing to move on Saturday, July 27. Tabitha speaks with her eldest son Scott about packing the truck to make the move as her youngest son Dillon hops around on one foot after losing a flip flop. This will be the family's first home, as Tabitha prepares to leave the safety net of Wilkes Villa for becoming a first-time homeowner.

KRISTIN BAUER

Aurora, 3, sits in her room at her family’s new home and gazes out her window at her first backyard, where she will be able to go outside and play.

KRISTIN BAUER

Tabitha and her daughter Aurora, 3, sit in the doorway of their new home for the first time as Aurora kisses her mother within minutes of entering the home. This is both Aurora and her mother's first home.

Tabitha Crabtree, a single mother of three, lived in an apartment complex run by the Lorain Metropolitan Housing Complex for 11-years. Tabitha first moved to Wilkes Villa when she was pregnant with her first child, and never thought she would stay. Although Wilkes Villa was the best place for her at the time, Tabitha found herself stuck in what many call the "projects." With an autistic son, mounting doctors' bills, and the cost of supporting a family of four, Tabitha said, "I was working so we could be OK today."

One month before the move, Tabitha looked at trailer homes at Colonial Oaks Mobile Home Park, in Elyria, Ohio. That same day, she put a deposit down on a home; a decision which was largely influenced by her desire to stand on her own two feet and her three children--Scott, 10, Dillon, 6, and Aurora, 3.

Then, on a rainy Saturday morning in July, with the help of her children and friends, Tabitha packed a truck with her family's belongings for the move. Although her new home is just five minutes down the road, she and her family left public housing to go home. Tabitha said, "I got my family out, and I am never coming back."

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