Bruceton Mills, WV – June 27, 2012 – (RealEstateRama) — David and Lois Lose have a smile on their face as they talk about the new addition to their home in the Brandonville community of Preston County. Mr. and Mrs. Lose qualified for low-interest loan funds through USDA Rural Development’s rural housing programs late last year.
Mr. and Mrs. Lose have lived in their home for 28 years. In April 2010, Mrs. Lose suffered a debilitating stroke. After much time in the hospital followed by a year of rehabilitation, she returned home last summer. Since that time, her family and friends have worked diligently to make modifications to their home to accommodate her wheelchair. However, the laundry area and bathroom presented a problem. The Lose’s were referred to USDA Rural Development through the North West Virginia Center for Independent Living. They began working with Dorina Helmick, Area Specialist for USDA Rural Development, located in the USDA Service Center in White Hall. Ms. Helmick said, “We were glad to be able to utilize our programs to help the Lose’s. We were able to qualify them for funding so that they could make modifications to their home that would make it more accessible for Mrs. Lose.”
USDA Rural Development funds were used to construct an addition that included a handicapped accessible laundry area and bathroom. “The people at USDA were pleasant to work with and helped us through the process of getting the funding that we needed for the addition,” said Mr. Lose. “It’s nice that these types of programs are available to help people like us.”
USDA Rural Development West Virginia State Director Bobby Lewis said, “We are excited to be celebrating National Homeownership Month in June. For more than 60 years, USDA has worked to increase homeownership opportunities for rural Americans through our housing programs.” Mr. Lewis went on to say, “Expanding and preserving homeownership is a major part of the foundation for a stronger, more prosperous rural America.”
Rural Development serves as the lead Federal entity for rural development needs and administers program assistance through its housing, business, community and infrastructure programs. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual’s income is derived from any public assistance program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.)
Further information on USDA Rural Development may be obtained by visiting USDA’s web site at http://www.rurdev.usda.gov. In West Virginia, call 1-800-295-8228 to be put in touch with the appropriate personnel serving your county. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s TARGET Center at 202.720.2600 (voice and TDD).
