June is National Homeownership Month
Pictured Above: 9 of the 10 new homes you helped to have built are now complete, and the tenth home will be complete in the next month.
Purchasing a home of their own was a major accomplishment for the descendants of sharecroppers. In 1964, my grandparents became first-time homebuyers in the L9. They wanted to make sure they had a place to call home--with no strings attached. My grandfather worked as a longshoreman, and my grandmother worked long hours at Charity Hospital to pay off their mortgage. Upon their death, they left that home to their kids and grandkids.
- Gaynell Brady, L9WHA Executive Director
June is National Homeownership Month
In honor of National Homeownership Month, we want to celebrate the legacy of homeownership here in the Lower 9th Ward. Before the flood, the Lower 9th Ward was a vibrant, hard-working community. Children grew up surrounded by extended family members, living in houses passed down from one generation to another.
Pictured from left to right: Delilah (Gaynell's grandmother), Linda, Florence (Gaynell's mom) outside their family home in the L9.
Since 2006, the L9WHA has sought to uphold the same spirit and legacy building exhibited by Gaynell's grandparents.
New Homeowner in the L9
Before Hurricane Katrina, the L9 was a majority African American community with more than 50% mortgage-free homeowners. We recently had the privilege of speaking with Dahlia--a new homeowner in the L9. We talked with her about the reason why she decided to purchase a home in the Lower 9. Here's what Dahlia said:
New Orleans is the great love of my life...I wanted to be thoughtful about where I set up roots...and I fell in love with the neighborhood. My hope is that there is a difference between rebuilding and gentrifying so we can preserve the community that makes it so wonderful to live here while expanding the resources available to our neighbors. Perhaps that is idealistic, but that is part of what makes it a nourishing place to live: you can see clearly the dream of a community that is thriving and dedicated to each other's well-being.
Dahlia was able to purchase her home because of the support given by you. You helped a person begin the process of creating generational wealth. Dahlia’s purple home is pictured above.
Help Us Build a Legacy
Continue your partnership with the L9WHA and the Homeownership Creation team in renewing the legacy of homeownership in the L9. Become a sustaining donor today!
Check It Out
Our Executive Director, Gaynell Brady, was featured on Fox 8 News here in New Orleans on June 14th in celebration of National Homeownership Month. Check out the press release here.
