A stone’s throw from Five Mile Pond: Ripples of intergenerational bliss
Cookouts. Pool parties. Sleepovers with the nieces and nephews. Relaxing on the back deck. Landscaping and home improvement projects. This summer, it’s all in store for first-time homeowner Luis Negron and his extended family.
“When I started meeting with Homeownership Specialist Mariola Jarzynska in fall 2024, I always told her, ‘I don’t give up.’ My stepdad raised me to never give up. To make the impossible happen. And I told her, ‘It’s going to happen before summer,’” said Negron, who bought a three-bedroom house in April 2025 near Five Mile Pond in Springfield.
“And I was so ambitious about it. I stopped buying shoes, stopped spending money, waited to buy another car. I decided to make a lot of sacrifices to get what I wanted.”
And what he wanted was to do right by his mother Leticia. She had been living on the sixth floor of a tower in downtown Springfield, where everything was included in the $800 a month rent.
“Including the mice. The cockroaches. I didn’t like the conditions she was living in,” said Negron, who works as a personal care assistant and is pursuing his commercial driver’s license at United Tractor Trailer School in Holyoke. “I felt bad for my mom. I didn’t want to be one of those selfish sons who buys himself something nice while my mom was living somewhere crappy. I remember all the sacrifices she made for me. I bought the house so my mom could have her first home and have somewhere to live and be happy and in peace. It wasn’t for me, to be honest, it was for her. I did everything for my mom. For family.”
Negron was highly motivated to house hunt after he got divorced and moved from Chicopee to live with his mother. He started the process quietly, in hopes of surprising his mom. With encouragement from his sister and a coworker, he attended Way Finders’ First-time Homebuyer Workshop in August 2024—pushing past some fears in the process.
“I used to be scared, to be honest, everybody used to scare me by saying that buying a house was going to be a lot. You’d pay double. You’d risk bankruptcy, everything. But my buddy told me, ‘Not everybody goes through the same scenario.’ So I took that first step,’” said Negron, who appreciated the welcoming tone of the workshop. “No question was a dumb question! I asked about moving to Connecticut, about solar panels. I’m a hands-on type of guy, I ask a lot of questions. They stressed the importance of doing research and really looking over the fine print before you sign anything.”
Upon completion of the workshop, participants receive a two-year certificate that is needed to pursue downpayment assistance programs and special mortgage products. They also receive an invitation to pursue one-on-one counseling with an expert staff member.
“That’s how I met Mariola. She helped me a lot, she calculated everything. She sent me contact information for realtors, law firms, banks, stuff like that,” said Negron, who worked previously as a warehouse selector for Performance Food Group and C&S Wholesale Grocers. “I appreciate everything Mariola did for me.”
Ultimately, Negron connected with a childhood friend who runs his own real estate company—and in turn connected him with the other key players needed to buy a home (mortgage company, insurance agent, lawyer). It felt like everything was clicking in place, recalled Negron, who was soon pre-approved and ready to look at homes. At this point, he actively involved his mother.
“I wanted her to see houses with me, because it was going to be her home. I wanted her to want it,” said Negron, who hopes to land a job driving for the dairy brand Hood. “At first, we were just looking for a two-family home so we could each have our own space. But we couldn’t find one. Then I spoke to my mom, like, ‘Ma, let’s just get a big one-family house. You can have the whole house with your grandkids. I’ll build myself my own apartment downstairs.’”
The fourth house Negron saw, which was built in 2004 and includes a spacious finished basement, was the one he bought. His mom was crazy about it.
“She’s always telling her friends at bingo, ‘My son bought me a house!’ She just had her first Mother’s Day here, we had a big, nice cookout,” said Negron, a self-proclaimed “sneaker head,” who did have a surprise up his sleeve the day it came to pick up the keys. “I told her the seller wanted more money, that we might not get the house, that we were going to look at a car. When we pulled up at our new house, she was going crazy, hugging and kissing my realtor and agent.”
Between working and going to trucking school—which Negron sees a pathway to lucrative opportunities both near and far, especially if he gets certified to transport hazardous materials—what made him say “yes” to Jarzynska’s invitation to share his homeownership story?
“I told Mariola, ‘Sure, why not? Why not tell the truth and tell people not to be scared?’” said Negron. “Don’t listen to what others say and doubt yourself or the process. Nothing is out of reach. If you really want something, go for it. You can’t sit down and wait for it to come to you. You’re going to have to start by taking those first steps and moving forward. If you fall, get back up. Going through Way Finders was the best experience for me, to help me with everything.”
Congratulations to you, Luis and family!