In partnership with local service providers, HOPE will also provide financial counseling, homebuyer education and entrepreneurial training at the Hope Economic Empowerment Center, and meeting space for nonprofit organizations and community groups.  

“The Hope Economic Empowerment Center will be a place where community comes together to help people prosper,” said HOPE CEO, Bill Bynum.

Mayor John Horhn was on hand to commend the project as a milestone in Jackson’s ongoing efforts to strengthen neighborhood economies and expand opportunity for residents. “Today represents hope in action,” said Mayor Horhn. “HOPE’s investment in our city helps ensure that Jacksonians have access to the tools, training, and financial resources they need to build a prosperous future.”

HOPE selected the location, the site of a vacant building that formerly housed two restaurants, to anchor redevelopment in North Jackson. HOPE incorporated the use of solar power and sustainable design elements in the construction of the facility.

The Hope Economic Empowerment Center is located at 5471 I-55 North in Jackson, MS 39206. It is open Monday-Thursday 8:30am-4:30pm and Friday 9:00am-5:30pm.

###

About HOPE:  HOPE (Hope Enterprise Corporation, Hope Credit Union and Hope Policy Institute) provides financial services; leverages resources; and engages in advocacy that strengthens the financial health of people in under-resourced communities in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi and Tennessee.  Since 1994, these efforts have benefitted more than three million people across the Deep South, and influenced billions in investments for persistent poverty communities nationwide.

Learn more at www.hopecu.org. 

The post HOPE Economic Empowerment Center Open for Business appeared first on Hope CU.

What Are Transformational Deposits?

Transformational Deposits are a form of socially responsible investing offered by HOPE. They allow individuals, organizations, and businesses to deposit funds that directly support lending in historically underserved communities across the Deep South. These deposits aren’t donations, and unlike stock investments, they are NCUA-insured and guaranteed to earn interest.

Transformational Deposits offer two account options: a money market account (MMA) or share certificates (equivalent to a Certificate of Deposit at a bank), and just like those accounts, they earn a guaranteed rate. However, unlike traditional MMAs and certificates at other financial institutions, HOPE’s Transformational Deposits accounts work to bridge financial gaps in communities that have long been excluded from economic opportunity.

Your socially responsible investment at HOPE will:

• Promote racial and gender equity
• Bridge gaps in homeownership
• Support Black- and women-owned businesses
• Establish critical community infrastructure

Key Goals of Transformational Deposits

The goal of Transformational Deposit is simple but powerful: to use financial resources to close opportunity gaps and create a more inclusive economy. These deposits channel capital into communities that have been systemically denied access to traditional banking options, especially rural communities, underserved neighborhoods, and low-income households.

At HOPE, we believe financial opportunity is a cornerstone of creating brighter futures. Through Transformational Deposits, accountholders become partners invested in that mission, helping families achieve homeownership, small businesses expand, and local economies grow stronger.

Why Choose a Hope Credit Union for Your Socially Responsible Investment

When you open a Transformational Deposit with HOPE, your money doesn’t disappear into speculative markets; it goes toward providing essential financial services to historically disenfranchised communities. You’ll maintain 24/7 access through HOPE’s digital banking tools, making it easy to manage your funds anywhere.

HOPE offers flexible ways to participate so you can choose the option that best fits your financial goals. Choose a certificate with terms from 12 to 60 months or a money market account that allows easy access to your funds up to six times per month. No matter which option you choose, your deposit is federally insured up to $250,000 for peace of mind with a reliable return.

How Your Investment Makes a Difference

When you make a Transformational Deposit, you’re joining a community of changemakers and organizations committed to advancing economic equity:

• You’re helping bridge the homeownership gap: 90% of HOPE mortgages are made to people of color.
• You’re fueling entrepreneurship in the Deep South: 74% of HOPE business loans are made in economically distressed regions.
• You’re funding the establishment of critical banking infrastructure: 46% of HOPE members were unbanked or underbanked before joining.
  
  

The ripple effect of your deposit goes far beyond the walls of HOPE. Every loan made possible by Transformational Deposits strengthens local economies, supports job creation, and builds generational wealth in places that need it most.

Open a Transformational Deposit Account at Hope Credit Union

Making a meaningful, socially responsible investment is easier than you think. Anyone in the country can become a Transformational Depositor, and you can get started online.

Whether you choose a certificate or money market option, your funds are federally insured, earn a reliable return, and immediately begin supporting affordable housing, small businesses, and essential community services throughout the Deep South.

Ready to put your money to work for good? Open your Transformational Deposit account today and help HOPE make it happen.

The post How to Make a Socially Responsible Investment appeared first on Hope CU.

After 14 years of renting a house in New Orleans, Ezebuiro decided it was time to fulfill her dream of buying a home. As a disabled person who works part-time as a cashier at the Superdome, she had been receiving rental assistance from the Housing Authority of New Orleans (HANO), funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Ezebuiro applied to HANO’s homeownership program, intent on using the subsidy to buy a house rather than continuing to rent. She enrolled in two HANO classes for would-be buyers, Financial Fitness and Homebuyer’s Education.

Ezebuiro’s friend referred her to HOPE, where she initially learned that she needed to eliminate much of her debt to qualify for a mortgage. So Ezebuiro buckled down, determined to attain her dream.

“Every time I got paid, I paid the credit cards. I don’t know how I made it. God helped me because nothing ever got cut off. I pinched here, pinched there, and I made sure everything got paid,” Ezebuiro said, adding that HOPE told her in detail what she needed to do, whereas another bank might have dismissed her outright as unable to meet the credit requirements.

When her debt was paid off, Ezebuiro returned to HOPE and began working with Virgil to apply for a 30- year, fixed-rate mortgage. In addition to the federal assistance for her monthly mortgage payments, Ezebuiro received a forgivable loan from the city of New Orleans and a $15,000 Hope Enterprise Corporation grant to help with the down payment. As HOPE does with many first-time home buyers, Virgil spoke to Ezebuiro about the importance of budgeting and managing her credit.

Meanwhile, Ezebuiro looked at homes with a realtor. Unable to afford large-scale repairs, she needed a house that was ready for her to move in with her daughter, Missy, and their dog. She was outbid on her ideal house, but then it came back on the market, albeit for a higher price than she had anticipated.

“And I said, ‘Lord, where am I going to get that money from?’ I didn’t know where I’d get it from, but I told my realtor, ‘Put that house in because I’m going to get this house.’ I’m in the house I wanted,” she said. It’s a 3-bedroom, 2-bath home with a yard where Ezebuiro is excited to host her son and two grandchildren for barbecues. When Ezebuiro closed on the house in November 2022, she called Virgil excitedly and sent pictures holding keys to her new home. Virgil said she got goosebumps. “It’s so exciting. Because there are some people out there who don’t even believe that they can own a home,” Virgil said. “It does take some legwork, but it’s there. It is available. It can happen.

The post From Dream to Reality: Owning a Home in NOLA appeared first on Hope CU.

Rather than dwelling on the years stolen from him, Jones immediately began making his remaining years count. In 2021, Jones, who had earned a GED in prison and taken college courses in business and real estate, launched Jones Property Group, a real estate investment company with a mission.

The company buys deteriorating properties in low-income New Orleans neighborhoods, renovates them, then makes them available for rent or purchase at modest prices. Jones markets his rental properties to Section 8 voucher holders, renters who receive housing subsidies.

“My mother was on a Section 8 voucher program years ago,” Jones says. “There’s a stigma associated with it. A lot of landlords don’t want to rent to these people, and it can be hard for them to find anywhere decent to live. I want to change that. I want to give people an opportunity to move into a house where they can relax. Where they can give their child his own room. Where they find freshly painted walls and nice flooring. I want to give them a place that feels like a little luxury instead of treating people badly because they can’t afford the things other people can.”

HOPE supported Jones in his mission with a commercial loan that allowed him to make extensive renovations to his properties while improving his cash flow.

“HOPE is a community financial organization,” Jones says. “Traditional banks can hand you too much red tape and it can be very discouraging. HOPE gives you opportunities and they make the process easy. I needed to find a trusted financial organization, one that I can build a lasting relationship with. I’ve found that in HOPE.”

In addition to his real estate business, Jones co-founded the Free-Dem Foundation, a nonprofit that mentors youth and returning citizens. Jones is teaching his mentees financial education lessons and introducing them to the basics of the real estate business, hoping to encourage a new generation of entrepreneurs.

“Kids that come from these environments, they generally don’t see people that look like them excelling and actually owning things,” Jones says. “I take them to my properties to see the work I’m doing, and they’re thrilled. They’ll say, ‘You actually own this stuff?’ Wow!’ “In prison, I saw people in their worst moments, and I’ve seen what anger and bitterness can do to a person,” Jones continues. “It makes me feel great to help other people. By helping other people and improving the environment around me, I’m changing myself for the better, too.”

The post Resilience Begins with HOPE appeared first on Hope CU.

The post Helping Businesses Spring Forward appeared first on Hope CU.

When Maddie Cannon realized that local public schools simply didn’t have the specialized resources to meet Ace’s needs, she decided to create a school that could. Cannon partnered with Ace’s speech therapist, Joellen Freeman, to found the Academy of Collaborative Education (ACE), a public charter school for children diagnosed with autism.

“We began by researching different types of schools for children with autism nationwide. Private schools for children on the spectrum had tuitions as high as $60,000 a year,” Joellen Freeman recalls. “We are in northeastern Louisiana, where that kind of tuition would not be possible for so many families in need.”

Instead, Cannon and Freeman developed a detailed plan for a public charter school that would be open to any child in Louisiana with a diagnosis of autism. The women spent more than two years visiting other schools nationwide, researching best learning practices for children on the spectrum, learning the ins and outs of founding a charter school, and rallying tremendous community support.

When the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education voted unanimously to approve ACE’s charter in front of a packed room of more than 100 supporters from around the state, the cheers could be heard outside the building. More than 100 applications poured in from families from all over Louisiana, reinforcing what Cannon and Freeman already knew – there was a desperate need for a school like ACE.

The co-founders found the perfect home for ACE in a former school building in Monroe that had stood vacant for three years. The school’s nonprofit arm, Friends of ACE, turned to HOPE for the critical financing needed to purchase and renovate the building. HOPE used grant funds from the Department of Education to make a $1.9 million loan to Friends of ACE to turn the shuttered building into a new school and a community focal point.

“HOPE gave us a quick turnaround on the loan, so we were able to get to work immediately,” Freeman says. “They understood that we were juggling a lot of things at once trying to launch the school, and they worked hard to make purchasing the building less ‘labor intensive’ for us. HOPE seemed as thrilled as we were that this project was happening.”  

On August 5, 2024, the doors to ACE opened, welcoming 92 students in grades K-5 from eight Louisiana parishes to a school created just for them. ACE is staffed by teachers and therapists who work together to ensure every child, from academically gifted students to those who need assistance with basic skills, has everything they need to learn and to thrive.

Freeman left her career as a speech therapist to serve as the school’s executive director. Maddie Cannon, ACE’s board president, was there every minute of the school’s first days, watching her dream come to life.

“Maddie loved every second of being here. When she left school early one day, I thought she was just tired,” Freeman says. “I couldn’t have imagined Maddie would never come back.” 

On August 30, 2024, just 25 days after ACE opened, 36-year-old Maddie Cannon died of a sudden illness. She left behind her husband and high school sweetheart, Richard, and their three young children, Gracyn, Jett, and Ace, now nine years old, for whom the school was named.

“Ace is thriving here. We know he misses his momma, but he’s been so happy here,” Freeman says through tears. “Maddie would be so proud of his progress.” 

Whether or not Ace knows that his mother founded the school he loves is unclear, but his father is certain that Ace feels Maddie’s presence there. For Richard Cannon and their other children, the school’s success has helped in some small way to ease their loss.

“Maddie got to see her dream come to fruition. That means everything,” Richard Cannon says. “Maddie left an awesome legacy, not just for our son, but for every one of those kids and their families, and for all the kids to come. I feel a duty to uphold that legacy. It gives me something to work for, a way to honor Maddie and to make her proud.”

The post Breakthroughs Begin with HOPE appeared first on Hope CU.

The post Financing Flavor appeared first on Hope CU.

Throughout HOPE’s history, our most meaningful impact has been achieved by collaborating with others who share our commitment to a Deep South where everyone can prosper. The value of partnership was on full display in August at the groundbreaking for the Center for Genomics and Health Disparity Research at Tuskegee University, an investment that will save lives across the globe by advancing groundbreaking research, while positioning the University to achieve a prestigious classification for doctoral training and research. Like so many Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tuskegee’s impact far exceeds the financial resources available to them, relative to institutions with large endowments and public funding.

We also had the opportunity to gather with mission aligned allies at DELTA FEST 2025. Over 3,200 people joined in person and online to activate solutions to expand ownership, entrepreneurship and community infrastructure. Thirty sessions equipped attendees with concrete tools to help build an economic ecosystem in the Deep South where everyday people can prosper. If you missed it this year, mark the first week of September on your calendar for DELTA FEST 2026!

Building on the importance of ownership to advancing economic opportunity, in this report, we feature Wilmar Jacobs, who became a homeowner with the help of a HOPE mortgage. Just this past year, he used the equity he had built to make renovations that increased the value of his asset and improved his quality of life.

Even while the people and communities served by HOPE disproportionately bear the weight of these challenging times, every entrepreneur, every member-owner, every homeowner, every community facility, every partnership makes clear that together we can forge a Deep South where inclusive prosperity is the rule, rather than the exception.

Thank you for being our consistent supporter and partner in this important work.

Sincerely,

Bill Bynum

Chief Executive Officer

Enhancing the Student Experience
Led by Jason “Smiley” Abrams, the Andy Abrams Foundation is a nonprofit organization created to address the lack of quality housing for students attending Jackson State University, a Historically Black College & University in Jackson, Mississippi. “I want to create a positive environment for young adults pursuing higher education,” said Abrams. Several years ago, Abrams came across a blighted property in Jackson and saw its potential as a place for student housing. After securing donations, he purchased the property but soon realized he needed additional funds to make the proper renovations. After being denied financing from another bank, Abrams turned to Hope Credit Union upon the advice from a mentor. Abrams secured a $350,000 HOPE loan to cover construction and remodeling costs, including furniture, kitchen appliances and other essential items necessary for student life. “We are continuing our mission and hope to open our doors to students in January 2026,” said Abrams.

Leveraging Ownership
Wilmar Jacobs has been a proud HOPE member-owner since 2015. When it came time to purchase his first home, choosing HOPE was an easy decision. Years later, he was ready to tap the equity he had built up through his HOPE mortgage and make long-awaited renovations. Jacobs once again turned to the credit union he trusted. “I feel great knowing I have a credit union like HOPE taking care of business,” said Jacobs. HOPE was there to help, approving him for a Home Equity Loan and moving him another step closer toward achieving his financial goals.

A Fresh Start in Springfield
Tony and Destiny Cook, along with their two children, moved from California to Springfield, Tennessee with nothing but “a hope and a prayer.” After a major layoff at their company, the family found themselves starting over. They stayed with family and friends in Pleasant View, TN, while working hard to pay down their debts and rebuild their credit. Once they reached a more stable place, the Cooks began searching for a home of their own. Mr. Cook partnered with a local realtor, who told him about Hope Credit Union and the loan products designed to help families in situations like theirs. “We wanted a nice place to raise our children… we wanted a home for them,” said Mr. Cook. The family had explored several mortgage lenders, but their gap in employment caused delays and setbacks. That changed when they learned about HOPE’s Affordable Housing Program, which offered 100% financing. With this support, the Cooks were approved for a home loan and were able to purchase their home sooner than expected. “HOPE offered a product and service that, to me, was unbelievable… it opened up an opportunity for my wife and I to set roots and provide for our children,” said Mr. Cook. On November 7, 2025, the Cooks closed on their first home. They now look forward to raising their family in the growing community of Springfield. “When I was starting to lose hope in owning a home… HOPE came through and gave it back to me,” said Mrs. Cook.

Breaking Ground for Groundbreaking Research with Tuskegee University
In August, Tuskegee University broke ground on the Center for Genomics and Health Disparity Research, an annex to the Carver Research Center. The $14 million project builds on a long legacy of research at Tuskegee University in the health care fields and continues to elevate the institution as a training ground for scientists in the Deep South. Once completed, the work at the center will play a pivotal role in moving Tuskegee University towards achieving the distinction of a Doctoral University with High Research Activity. HOPE committed $7 million in New Markets Tax Credits to the project. “Tuskegee is about hope,” said Dr. Mark A. Brown, President and CEO. “We always have been about hope and solutions. Today, we are saying to the world that if you’re looking for the solution, it can be found right here. We’re going to build this building that is yet another building that will solve the nation’s most complex problems.”

Rising to New Heights in Housing
New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity (NOAHH) is an organization that partners with families in New Orleans and surrounding areas in Louisiana to build and finance new, safe, and affordable homes. NOAHH makes homeownership possible for families who do not qualify for traditional home loans by combining a willingness to contribute their time into building the NOAHH homes with no interest financing. NOAHH recently acquired a 40-acre site on a former golf course, in Terrytown, Louisiana and transformed it into a mixed-use community that serves as a model for affordable urban development. To bring this vision to life, NOAHH partnered with HOPE, which provided $6.7 million in New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) financing to support the development. Rising Oaks will feature 68 units, including 2-, 3-, and 4-bedroom single-family homes, as well as dedicated senior housing, all designed for long-term affordability, accessibility, and sustainability. “Since initially learning about this project, I have appreciated NOAHH’s commitment to working with the Council and community to identify shared objectives and thinking about how to use Rising Oaks as a platform for a long-term community development partnership with Terrytown, the West Bank, and Jefferson Parish,” said Marion Edwards, Jefferson Parish District 1 Councilman.

DELTA FEST 2025 – Planting Seeds and Activating Communities Toward Prosperity
In August, more than 3,200 entrepreneurs, creatives, influencers, developers, investors, philanthropists, corporate executives, community builders, and other changemakers from across 20 countries and 4 continents gathered in person and online for DELTA FEST, a strategy to forge by 2035, a Deep South economic ecosystem where everyday people can access the resources they need to realize their potential and prosper.

Structured to advance solutions that advance ownership, entrepreneurship and community infrastructure, and infused with actionable information, networking, music and fun, attendees exchanged resources and strategies that they could put to use advancing economic opportunity.

Participants called the presentations powerful and the engagement electric. According to one attendee, “You could just walk up to a mayor, a speaker, or a leader and have a real conversation.” They added: “I know it’s going to grow so big—I don’t want to lose this.”

Organized by HOPE, in collaboration with Yancey Consulting, DELTA FEST received generous support from The Ford Foundation, Wells Fargo, Capital One, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Goldman Sachs, and Nathan Cummings Foundation and other donors who didn’t just write checks; they showed up.

Our collective journey from possibility to prosperity continues in communities across the region. Mark the first week of September on your calendars for DELTA FEST 2026. A full recap of DELTA FEST 2025 is available here.

From Renters to Owners: Honoring Sabrina Billings’ Transformative Leadership
At the 2025 Dorothy Richardson Award Ceremony for Resident Leadership, hosted by NeighborWorks America, community transformation took center stage. Alpresteon “Sabrina” Billings, CEO of Gateway Community Development Corporation in Yazoo County, Mississippi, was recognized for leading an initiative that helped 40 families move from renting to owning their homes.

Through partnerships with Hope Enterprise Corporation, Enterprise Community Partners, and NeighborWorks America, Billings was the on the ground leader who guided residents through a first-of-its kind lease-purchase program that included financial coaching and access to affordable mortgages. Her work embodies the spirit of collaboration that defines HOPE’s mission: empowering families, strengthening communities, and building generational wealth across the Deep South. “I’m looking forward to when I say, these are your keys. Now this is your home and you can pass it on from generation to generation,” said Billings.

The post 2025 Third Quarter Report appeared first on Hope CU.

Here’s how you can help HOPE break down the institutional barriers that have led to persistent poverty in the Deep South this Giving Tuesday—and why you should.

What Is Giving Tuesday and Why It Matters in the Deep South

Held this year on December 2, Giving Tuesday is a global generosity movement that has taken place on the first Tuesday after Thanksgiving since 2012 to encourage people to transform the world by doing good in their local communities: donating money or goods, volunteering, or performing simple acts of kindness. 

A local day of generosity across the Deep South

The Deep South knows the power of community—and this Giving Tuesday, that power has never been more vital. As local nonprofits work tirelessly to bridge gaps in education, healthcare, financial, and food access in their under-resourced communities, Giving Tuesday channels the region’s strong traditions of community generosity and neighbor-helping-neighbor in a systematic, impactful way.

Giving Tuesday can help address historic inequities by funding structural and racial equity initiatives that bolster community resources, providing much-needed donations to local food banks, shelters, and youth development organizations.

HOPE does this and more: providing resources that directly empower people and businesses across the Deep South, with locations in communities that many traditional financial institutions underserve, underfund, and overlook.

Moving from Donation to Transformation

But HOPE can’t do it alone. With three out of four members earningless than $50,000 annually and two out of three with less than $1,000 in their savings, HOPE needs your help to bring financial resources into these communities.

Giving Tuesday is the perfect time to provide it. Rather than a one-time donation, a Transformational Deposit is a socially responsible investment that helps empower lasting change.

Supporting housing, jobs, and education through deposits

Your Transformational Deposit can make a real difference across the Deep South, helping to build opportunities for individuals and families and strengthen businesses and communities. In 2024 alone, these deposits helped HOPE:

• Bridge homeownership gaps: 90% of HOPE’s mortgages were to people of color; 94% were first-time homebuyers, and 65% were women.
• Build the local economy: HOPE financed 125 business and community economic projects, creating 1,112 jobs. 69% of this financing was in economically distressed areas, and 53% went to Black-owned businesses.
• Advance affordable housing: 3,276 people in affordable-housing units.
• Expand access to high-quality education: 3,080 students are taught annually in HOPE-financed schools.
• Improve health outcomes: 123,090 patients treated in HOPE-financed healthcare facilities.

Read more about the impact a HOPE transformational deposit makes in their latest report.

What Are Transformational Deposits?

Transformational Deposits import capital into low-wealth communities where local deposits cannot provide the resources needed to fuel housing, jobs, education, healthcare, and other essential needs.

There are two account options at HOPE: share certificates and a money market account. Both require only $1,000, pay you interest, are federally insured up to $250,000, and offer convenient access to your money.

How Transformational Deposits Differ from Donations

Like charitable donations, Transformational Deposits work to make the world a better place. The difference? With a Transformational Deposit, you’re investing in the Deep South—and in yourself—earning a guaranteed rate of return on the money you deposit.

Plus, with Transformational Deposits, you can be confident your money is making a real and lasting impact on the local community. Prefer a more traditional donation? You can support HOPE’s mission that way, too, by donating General Operating Support.

Make a Transformational Deposit and Make a Lasting Impact This Giving Tuesday

Making a Transformational Deposit is simple—on Giving Tuesday and all year long. To open your account and support HOPE’s mission, get in touch with our team at investorrelations@hope-ec.org. Contact us to start your Transformational Deposit account and make a lasting impact on your Deep South neighbors, now when they need it most.

The post Giving Tuesday: Make a Lasting Impact with a Transformational Deposit appeared first on Hope CU.

These modern, airy homes were built to blend into the neighborhood, said Lou White, founder and executive director of Louvis. They have gardens for tenants to grow their own food, called the Edible Landscape program, and screened-in porches.

The New Orleans Redevelopment Authority gave Louvis the land on which to build the two tiny homes, which are attached to each other. Architects, engineers and construction supervisors donated their services to develop the houses. When it came time to finance the construction, White went to local banks but was turned down.

The viability of the project ultimately came down to the willingness of two Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) to support the project together. NewCorp Inc, a New Orleans based CDFI, provided the construction loan for Louvis and HOPE provided the permanent take out loan of $150,000.

During the process of assembling the financing, White said a number of people directed her to HOPE, where she finally met with Commercial Loan Officer Monica Walker.

“As we went through the process and she saw all the drawings, and we explained everything, she got it. She got on board with it,” White said of Walker. “And then she was just so helpful in managing the loan application. I feel like she was our advocate. With us being a fairly new organization, no one wanted to take a chance with us, but HOPE did.”

Walker was enthusiastic about a project that not only shelters people but supports them with counseling and other services in their new homes.

“This is two people, off the streets, in dignified homes. The houses are well-thought out with the full amenities, and then Louvis connects the tenants to the services that they need,” Walker said, adding that working with Louvis is one of her favorite projects at HOPE. The organizations are partnering to develop housing on four additional lots given to Louvis by the city of New Orleans.

“It felt like it was a really good match for us. It felt like a true partnership. They were as excited as I was,” White said.

White bases Louvis’ holistic model on research that shows that people who are unhoused because of a disability, chronic health condition or mental health challenge benefit from the combination of housing and services. She said for services to be effective, they should be flexible and attractive to people who need them, and paired with affordable, permanent housing. Louvis’ two new tenants have case managers through the city of New Orleans, so the organization checks in periodically with the residents and the social workers. Blue Cross Blue Shield sponsors the Edible Landscaping home garden program, which offers financial incentives to tenants through Louvis to work in their gardens.

“The reality is that when you’re homeless, it’s really hard to do the things that people say you should do,” White said. “When people have a stable place to live and have support, they can make changes, and it benefits the community because these residents are then no longer completely reliant on public services. It works for people and it works for the community.”

The post Making Housing Happen appeared first on Hope CU.