Faces of affordable housing: Erica Gilbert

Editor's note: Affordable housing is about everyone in our community being able to afford a home that supports good physical, financial, and emotional well-being. This occasional series produced by Lakes Region Community Developers and Lakes Region Community Services features stories of people who live in affordable housing in the Lakes Region. The columns will share their life journeys, struggles, triumphs, and aspirations. They think readers will find that their goals and dreams are not so different from their own.

Erica Gilbert, a hard-working mother of two, grew up in the Lakes Region town of Gilmanton. When she had her first child at 19 and second child two years later, she needed to stay in the Lakes Region, where she had the support and help of her mother.

Erica became a Lakes Region Community Developers resident in 2018 with her first apartment at Harvey Heights in Meredith. Living in Meredith was important to Erica because her daughter was already an established student at Inter-Lakes Elementary School. She also wanted her son to attend the same school. “It was important to me that my kids be together,” she explained.

When Erica came to live at LRCD, she was working hard as an assistant manager at Burger King and participating in a year-long program, Aware Recovery, for her substance use disorder.

Once Erica had the stability and safety of a home for her kids, she could dream and pursue goals to improve her and her children’s futures. Erica joined the AmeriCorps national service program where, for one year she worked as an AmeriCorps Vista member at Navigating Recovery. AmeriCorps provides a small stipend to their volunteers. As a Harvey Heights resident, Erica’s housing was based on her income, and she had a housing subsidy. With the stipend from AmeriCorps and a housing subsidy, Erica could maintain her housing and meet her family’s needs during her year of service.

Once her year of service was complete, she knew what career was right for her. Erica is now a full-time employee of Navigating Recovery where she is a recovery coach.

In this work, she is helping others with substance use disorder work through their recovery. Erica helps them with the steps of recovery and to find housing, employment, and other resources they need. “In this job, I can give back, help people, and it helps me stay accountable,” she stated.

Erica's employment at Navigating Recovery made her income too high to stay in her home at Harvey Heights Apartments. She was happy in her career and to make more money for her family, but she was concerned about where they were going to live. She needed to stay in Meredith for her kids, and the small selection of rentals available in Meredith were too expensive. So, Erica worked with LRCD’s resident services coordinator and was able to find her family a new home at LRCD’s Pinecrest Apartments in Meredith, where income restrictions are different than Harvey Heights. "I was so relieved to find a new home in Meredith for my kids," said Erica.

Erica is grateful that she gets to raise her children in the Lakes Region. They love that they can hike here and after a short drive, they can be hiking in the White Mountains. Fishing down the street at the docks is also a favorite of theirs. She says her kids also love to swim, sharing “we go to Leavitt Park almost every day in the summer. My kids always want to be in the water”.

When asked about the importance of a stable home, Erica said, “a stable home was the base I needed to pursue the life I wanted for myself and my kids. Without a safe, stable home, it is hard to do anything more than try to survive. I never thought I would have my own apartment or that I would be able to be a normal mom.”

What’s next for Erica? She has an educational grant from her time with AmeriCorps and someday wants to pursue a degree in human services. Today she wants to continue to grow, enjoy raising her kids, and help her community.