For single mom Nadia McCawley and her two teen boys, Christmas has certainly arrived early. More than a half dozen people inside the leasing office of The MOD apartment complex in Phoenix scrambled to finalize their decorations and gifts for the unsuspecting family Thursday.
“Nine years ago, we started a program called rent-free Christmas,” said Western Wealth Capital CEO Janet Lepage to Nadia and her kids as they sat down in anticipation.
Western Wealth Capital owns and manages more than 50 apartment complexes nationwide, including The MOD. For nearly a decade, they’ve surprised one resident at each property with a special gift for the holidays.
“What this program is, is that at every community, there’s one family that’s selected by our team members that work there, for a hand up at Christmas,” said Lepage.
Most of their apartments are in areas where families struggle to make ends meet. They're working-class men and women, who, like most of us could use a little help from time to time.
“We’re seeing a lot more residents struggling these days,” said Jabar Miles.
Miles is The MOD community manager and says when tasked with choosing a resident to receive this gift, he thought of no one better than Nadia.
“She is a very dedicated mother, hardworking, when you have someone who does for others constantly, they deserve something in return at some point,” said Miles.
Nadia learned Thursday that she wouldn’t have to worry about paying rent for December after recently experiencing a major financial setback.
“Some stuff happened, and it just turned our world upside down and we probably wouldn’t have had Christmas without this, so it means more to us than anything else,” said Nadia.
Not only will she be able to pocket the $1,600 in rent, but the complex also made sure to shower the family with gifts.
“My mom, she always thinks about everybody but herself, she cares about us, she loves us, she always shows unconditional love to us,” said Shawn Gallagher, Nadia’s 13-year-old son.
But on Thursday, that love was shown back to her through a meaningful gesture that led to lots of hugs and tears.