Patricia Livas and her sons David and Jeremiah escaped the fury of Hurricane Katrina with little more than the clothes they wore and a few precious mementos of a life left behind in New Orleans.

HUD official C. Donald Babers welcomes Patricia Livas to her new home.

After relying on the immediate generosity of family, they began looking for more permanent housing in North Texas.

This search brought them in contact with Interfaith Housing Coalition volunteers at the Dallas Convention Center shelter. IHC was accepting applications from displaced families for transitional housing in 100 HUD-owned single-family homes in and around Dallas and Houston. Several non-profit and faith-based organizations chipped in with donations of furniture, food, and household goods.

The Livas family was offered the opportunity to live in one of these homes rent-free for up to eighteen months. Livas gladly accepted the offer.

"It's just totally awesome," she exclaimed. "I slept here last night and every bit of my three to four hours of sleep was peaceful. It was like home. It takes the stress off trying to find a job with very limited resources."

Many HUD-owned homes are providing shelter for evacuees.

Patricia thanks one of the many volunteers.