Alice father, daughter receive keys to Habitat for Humanity home
Leonel Leo Gonzales II and his daughter, Mavis, got the keys to Habitat’s 23rd Alice home after hundreds of sweat-equity hours and years of work.
Leonel Leo Gonzales II did not receive a house in Alice as a giveaway. He earned it, one shift and one volunteer hour at a time, until Habitat for Humanity of Jim Wells County handed him the keys to the affiliate’s 23rd completed home on Friday, May 29.
Gonzales and his daughter, Mavis, were selected for the home on Jan. 18, 2026, after he applied with a simple goal: a stable place for his family. Gonzales said faith led him to seek Habitat housing, and he described the move as the “first chapter” in a better future for his daughter. Habitat officials said he completed hundreds of hours of sweat equity to qualify.
The family’s new address carries a larger local meaning in Jim Wells County, where affordable homeownership remains out of reach for many working families. Gonzales has worked at McDonald’s for 11 years, and Habitat’s model is built around the kind of long-term commitment that can turn a single build into lasting stability. Homebuyers purchase their houses through affordable, no-profit mortgages after meeting program requirements and contributing labor of their own.
Sandra Bowen, president of Habitat for Humanity of Jim Wells County, described the program as a “hand up, not a hand out.” She said Gonzales went above and beyond, often arriving straight from his McDonald’s shift and working alongside board members and visiting volunteers known as Care-A-Vanners. Among them were Peggy and Tom Wilcox, part of a group of 10 couples who travel together from community to community to help Habitat affiliates nationwide.
The Alice build also shows how land and volunteer capacity can shape what gets built, and how quickly. The city donated four lots for Habitat’s work on the block, and Gonzales’ house was the fourth completed there. City leaders later donated a fifth adjacent lot, creating room for another family to follow the same path from application to ownership.
For Mavis, the milestone was immediate and personal. She said her favorite room was her own, a small detail that underscored what Habitat’s work means on the ground: not simply a new house, but privacy, safety and a place to grow. Habitat for Humanity of Jim Wells County is listed at PO Box 1103 in Alice, and Habitat Texas lists the affiliate’s phone number as (361) 701-3648.
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