HOPE in a New Home

Menelik and Njeri are now the owners of a duplex they rented years ago thanks to HOPE. When they were ready to buy the home, they expected to encounter some obstacles, especially after reaching out to another financial institution without success. Then, someone referred them to HOPE, where the mortgage team soon had them on a path to homeownership. During the process, Njeri was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer. “The whole thing was stressful, but when you’re dealing with something like this, it’s like the word ‘HOPE’ helped me pull through,” she says. The couple’s home is located near a bridge named for Menelik’s father, A.W. Willis, a civil rights lawyer and the first black state representative elected in Tennessee. “It’s like all the pieces fell together, including the name of the company that financed our home,” Njeri says.