This was the message Miltonian Christina Graham delivered to the Region’s health and social services committee recently as she shared her story about her plight for local inexpensive housing.

After becoming a single mom of two several years ago, Graham had to move in with her parents to make ends meet.

“They helped me financially until I was able to set up daycare and find employment. The more I had to rely on someone else, the guiltier I felt,” she said. “I longed for independence, to have a place to call home.”

But she was up against the challenge of finding an affordable place to live locally.

“There are very few choices in Milton,” she said. “Through a friend, I was able to find an organization that provided low-income housing nearby. Yet, without my mother’s help for that first year, even that would’ve been impossible.”

And with Milton’s rapid growth, Graham said affordable housing is only going to become more of a problem for many families.

“What are these people to do if they can’t afford any of these new houses? Where will they go?” she questioned.

“The community should be investing in these families, helping them to grow and become a part of the community. Instead, many who have lived here all their lives have to move away.”

While things are better for Graham these days — she now has a driver’s license, full-time employment and was able to move into her own house — she’s still pursuing the affordable housing issue as a participant in Halton’s ‘Voices for Housing Choices’ program.

The initiative brings together a panel of community members to put a human face on local housing needs.

“It’s my hope that Voices, by sharing our stories and experiences, can make enough of an impact on the community that we will begin to see more affordable housing in Halton and families like mine can continue to live here,” she said.

“I believe that if we come together and take a stand for what is needed in our community, we can make it a better place for everyone.”

The Region is in the process of implementing its Comprehensive Housing Strategy (CHS), which aims to address Halton’s housing needs until 2015.

As part of the process, regional council endorsed a set of goals and principles at its meeting last Wednesday that will support the delivery of assisted housing units in Halton. The target is to create 800 assisted units by 2015.

Melanie Hennessey can be reached at mhennessey@miltoncanadianchampion.com .