For Chardanee Harvey, a Kansas City teacher, veteran, and first-time homebuyer, the journey to homeownership wasn’t simple—but it was deeply meaningful. After multiple failed attempts to buy a home, including one just before the pandemic, Chardanee had nearly given up on the idea.
“I tried at least three times before,” she recalled. “Once in 2020, right before the pandemic, and then again in 2023 and 2024. But I just kept running into challenges. My lenders didn’t feel personal. I felt pressure, and honestly, I didn’t feel guided.”
Everything changed when she connected with Teachers Like Me, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preparing future educators for success both inside and outside the classroom. Through the organization’s “Money Mondays” sessions—monthly financial literacy workshops in partnership with NASB—Chardanee started to realize that homeownership might still be within reach.
“After the first call, I was like, OK… maybe I am in a position to buy. Natalie [Rowe] helped me believe that this was obtainable for me, even though I had just switched careers.”
Chardanee had left her corporate job at Oracle (formerly Cerner) to pursue teaching—honoring a calling she'd discussed with her grandmother, a lifelong educator, shortly before she passed away. That life transition made her hesitant. “They always say, ‘Don’t switch jobs before you buy a house.’ I didn’t know if I even qualified anymore.”
But with the guidance of Natalie Rowe from NASB and Jorge Fuller, her recruiter at Teachers Like Me, Chardanee was introduced to Beverly Smith, her loan officer at North American Savings Bank. That’s when everything started to click.
“Beverly walked me through every question I had. I told her, ‘Hey, I just switched careers—is this still possible?’ And she reassured me: Yes, it is. She made the whole process feel easy.”
As a veteran, Chardanee qualified for a VA loan—but until working with NASB, she hadn’t fully understood the breadth of benefits it offered.
“I knew about no money down, but I didn’t know I didn’t have to pay a funding fee because I’m 100% service-connected. Beverly helped me understand all of that.”
“She even told me to reach out to my county because there might be other benefits for veterans like tax freezes. Nobody had told me that before.”
More than just helping her navigate the paperwork, Beverly and the NASB team gave Chardanee something just as valuable: confidence and clarity.
“With other lenders, I felt like just a number. But NASB made it feel personal. I never felt like I was asking a dumb question. They made me feel like I belonged in this process.”
In July of 2025, Chardanee closed on her first home.
When asked what owning a home means to her, she didn’t hesitate:
“It’s something I’ve always wanted. I used to say I wanted to own a home by the time I was 30. Well, 30 came and went—but it finally happened. It means stability. It means honoring my grandmother. It means knowing that dreams are still possible, even when life gets hard.”
Her message for others wondering if homeownership is within reach?
“It is obtainable. There are people and organizations, such as NASB and Teachers Like Me, who truly want to help. No matter where you are in life, even in this economy, your dreams are still possible.”
