Oakland, California, 2017  – “From my application to move-in everyone was so nice and happy,” recalled Kiros Gebregzabher. Kiros has a noticeable warmth in her voice as she shares details about how much her life has improved since moving into Cathedral Gardens in Oakland. Before moving into the community, Kiros had a difficult time dealing with the rising cost of housing at her previous apartment in Richmond.

“The rent was too expensive,” said Kiros, who paid more than half her income on rent and utilities. “I couldn’t afford to live there.”

Kiros also had a difficult time with traffic and commuting to work at a retail store located in Oakland, often she would wake up on at 4 o’clock in the morning to make it to work on time. Moving closer to work would save her time, reduce her transportation costs, lessen her stress level and be able to save more of her earned income for the future.

Through a friend, Kiros heard about Cathedral Gardens and decided to apply. During the application process whenever Kiros had a question the Cathedral Gardens team always had an answer. Kiros found the application process easy with their help. She now enjoys having access to the community room, recreational gym and the friendliness of the entire Cathedral Gardens community.

“This is a god gift for me,” Kiros said. “We have everything here.”