A home for the holidays.

Byline: Serena Markstrom The Register-Guard

Jessica Heflin and Robert Ellzey skipped breakfast Friday and went straight to the St. Vincent de Paul office to sign the lease for their new two-bedroom apartment.

Since the hurricanes hit in the south, the couple have been uprooted, their privacy nonexistent, their future a worrisome topic.

Robert Ellzey had found temporary work at a mill, but they hadn't saved enough money for their own place. Until Friday, the family of three, with a baby on the way, had stayed in a bedroom in Heflin's brother's Eugene duplex and slept on a mat on the floor.

Thanks to some nudging on the part of a St. Vincent housing manager, life just got easier for the family, formerly of Lake Charles, La.

"People are really nice to help us," said Heflin, 18. "I mean, they don't have to."

Amy Harwood, housing manager for St. Vincent de Paul, said because of a Housing and Urban Development request, the agency must move hurricane evacuees to the front of the 250-family waiting list for the agency's limited housing stock, because the housing is built with federal tax credit grant money.

"It's really tough to come up with $1,000 for move-in for anyone," Harwood said. After hearing of the family's situation, she queried other St. Vincent officials to try to pull together some donations for upfront costs.

The couple will pay their own $460 monthly rent.

So far, five evacuee families, including Ellzey and Heflin, have found housing through the agency, Director Terry McDonald said. Churches and other sources helped the other families with move-in fees, McDonald said, but this family didn't have that sort of financial support.

McDonald said she believes that the family will do well, noting they have family support in town and seem motivated to find permanent employment.

A bequest in a stranger's will and a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency covered initial fees.

Ellzey, 26, was working as a welder in Wyoming when the hurricanes hit. Heflin and now 20-month-old Cole stayed in their home during Katrina, but evacuated to Mississippi during Rita. Their house was destroyed.

Heflin stayed in Mississippi until joining her husband in Wyoming. They drove to Oregon with a car full of clothes and photos, but not much else.

The couple, expecting a second son any day, said the apartment alone was a blessing, but they were also grateful that another anonymous donor had furnished the second bedroom with baby items - a crib lined with fluffy sage green and white bedding with animal prints, a bassinet, a diaper changing pad and some toys.

"I couldn't believe it," Heflin said of the surprise. "It was very nice of them. Everything's been really nice. Really nice. I wasn't expecting anything."

The donors also left a small stuffed giraffe named Jeremiah, meant for a baby born at Christmastime, plus cash and a personal note.

Ellzey said he was looking forward to cooking his own food again. He said the first thing he would make once he had pots, pans and other dishes is seafood gumbo.

They planned to move in immediately. St. Vincent employees will follow up to help with necessities.

After fielding questions from the media, posing for photographs and absorbing their new digs, it was finally lunchtime.

"I gotta eat something," Heflin said, holding her pregnant belly and smiling.

CAPTION(S):

Robert Ellzey and his wife, Jessica Heflin, welcome their 20-month-old son, Cole, to their new apartment Friday. Donors added some surprise gifts.