“It wasn’t just getting a home,” Barbara Puglisi says of MARK’s homebuyer program, “it was getting a community.” She moved to Margaretville in the summer of 1997 as a single mother. Working as a paralegal in town, she heard about the MARK’s program for first-time buyers. It provided money for a down payment and closing costs – also a requirement to put $2500 in escrow in case of any emergencies that might come up while owning the home.

Working for a local attorney, Barbara spoke often to realtors. They all knew she was looking for a house and promised to let her know if something came up in her price range. Finally one place did. It was now 1998, and the house was a foreclosure. The bank wanted to move quickly. She and one other buyer had to present their full and final offer. This would be nerve wracking for any homebuyer. “My offer was accepted,” she says, the relief still palpable in her voice, “and I became a homeowner.” She bought a three-bedroom house on nearly 13 acres, in New Kingston.

She closed on the property in late August. “On Labor Day weekend my entire family came up from Long Island to celebrate my new home and my daughter’s 6th birthday.” She says. There was a drought and her well ran dry just as the guests pulled into the driveway. Suddenly that escrow money was urgent. She called Titan Drilling. They soon fixed the problem, and MARK immediately released the funds. Since then there have been many celebrations in the home: holidays, Easter, Thanksgiving and her daughter’s graduation party.

Barbara still gets choked up thinking about it. “Becoming a homeowner changes your life,” she says. “It makes you a different person. I cannot thank the Mark Project enough for all their support. I’m still in that home and still grateful.”