Melissa Waheneka

Melissa Waheneka opened her IDA account in August 2010, with the goal of repairing a home her husband Harlan and she had recently inherited from his grandmother.  Though the house was in relatively good condition, the couple knew that they would need, within a few years, to replace the roof, fix the gutters, and put new siding on the front of the house.  Their goal, according to Melissa, was to prevent the ceiling from leaking, improve drainage around the house, and to head off future repairs.”

Harlan felt that the changes would make the house more livable and more comfortable for Melissa, himself, and their three children and five foster children. In October 2015, after saving over $9,000 in WSCAT’s IDA program, the couple made the repairs they had long hoped to make.  “I’m really satisfied with the work the contractors did; it looks nice and it’ll last for a quite a while,” said Harlan. Melissa added, “I’m glad that we were able to save in the IDA program because repairs like these are not cheap.”  The couple intends to continue saving in the program to make further renovations to their home in the future.