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Young kids raced around with paint rollers, white streaks decorating their faces. Parents chatted while taking breaks to munch on snacks and meet new faces. Volunteers reached towards the sky with long rollers to paint the heights of the Acebedo family’s new home on Dewees Street in Columbus. Around a dozen had gathered to donate their time and energy to paint the Acebedos’ future home on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Monday, Jan. 19.
Steve Guidroz, the project’s general contractor from Steel Blue Construction, started the early morning with a reminder of the wisdom of King.
“Dr. King challenged us not to ask, ‘What will happen to me if I do nothing?’ but rather, ‘What will happen to others if I do not act?’” Guidroz said.
“Today, each of us has chosen to act, to serve, to stand together, to help create a more just and caring world. As we begin our work, let us carry Dr. King’s spirit with us, a spirit of service, unity and love. May our hands build homes and may our hearts build a strong community.”
The Acebedos will be able to move into their new home a few months from now with final interior and exterior work to be completed. Kristina Acebedo, a single mother of five, will be moving in with three of her three non-adult children. The four will be leaving a small two-bedroom home with a hole in the roof covered by a tarp.
“When we left, every night I prayed with my kids. Every single night,” Acebedo said. “I said, ‘This is just a stepping stone. We won’t be here forever.’” Acebedo said she left a toxic marriage in 2022 and moved herself and her kids to their current home. She started working at a local hospital to provide for her family and applied to Habitat for humanity for a home. However, a breast cancer diagnosis derailed her plans. After surviving three surgeries, Acebedo regrouped and applied for a second time – with success.
“I cried. I was so excited,” Acebedo said. “I told my kids, ‘See, we were patient, and we prayed, and we gave it to God. And look. Look what we are getting.’” The construction on the home began in October 2025 and is currently a month ahead of schedule. Acebedo attributes being ahead to the number of volunteers that have contributed to the project. She said the process has allowed her to connect more with the community and meet new faces.
“Everybody has just been so wonderful and selfless,” Acebedo said. “It’s been amazing meeting different people in the community that I haven’t met.”
Acebedo’s three younger kids, Embry, Carson and Bryson, said they were “excited” and feeling “good” about the new home. Carson said he is happy to live next to a park. Embry said she is excited to get her own room. Kristinia said she hopes the new home will provide her family with stability and legacy.
