Help Hike for KaTREEna win $50,000!
From September 1-27, if you make a purchase in one of 21 participating Starbucks stores
in the Greater New Orleans area
you'll receive a token you can drop into a voting bank
to show your support for Hike for KaTREEna. See details here.
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Beacon in the News
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Check out our Most Recent PressDenise Thornton and other New Orleanians speak about progress and challenges in the five years since Katrina.
Full NPR radio piece Denise and Doug Thornton, along with other New Orleanians, describe life in New Orleans five years after the storm.
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Hey Seniors! Lakeview Shepherd Center is now on the
internet! Check out their website for information on programs, volunteering, donations, and news! The mission of Lakeview Shepherd
Center is to enable older adults to remain vital, independent, promote
positive aging and celebrate senior wisdom and talent.
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11th Annual Lakeview Fest
Sunday, September 19th 12-9 PM
St. Dominic School Yard
775 Harrison Ave
*Music all day
*Wear your Black & Gold
*Craft, Food, and Children's Game Booths
*Contractor Expo |
Meet the New Beacon Staff!
Meredith has previously worked in the non-profit world
with the local rebuilding organization Phoenix of New Orleans. She has
previously worked teaching kids the art of making prints and books,
and has also worked in sales and design at a local construction
company. Meredith is very excited to join the team as Market Manager,
and hopes to make the Harrison Avenue Markets better than ever!
Laura Mellem
Community Coordinator
Laura came to New Orleans in November 2009 as
an AmeriCorps VISTA with Neighborhood Housing Services and served as
the Volunteer Coordinator at the 7th Ward Neighborhood Center. With a
passion for neighborhood-level organizing and social justice, Laura is
excited to join the Beacon of Hope Resource Center as the Community
Coordinator.
Laura Partridge
Administrative Assistant
Over the past five years Laura worked in
the television, state, non-profit and local business worlds obtaining a
wide variety of administrative and management experience. She joined
the Beacon's staff as the Executive Administrative Assistant in
September 2010. She is responsible for assisting the Executive
Director and Beacon staff members along with overseeing daily office
tasks and accounting.
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Starbucks C.O.A.S.T. Grant Awarded to Beacon of Hope
 Starbucks Executives visited one of the 30 Gentilly
recipients receiving help from Beacon of Hope's recently funded program. Beacon
of Hope was awarded a grant from Starbucks to assist homeowners affected by Katrina to complete final touches on their homes. Fresh paint and
replanted gardens were on most recipients' wish lists. In this video Ms. Michele Ratcliff speaks with visiting Starbucks Executives about returning to her home, her neighborhood, and her community in the Sugar Hill subdivision of Gentilly.
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Beacons Map Infrastructure Issues
New and exciting survey techniques to address infrastructure problems in Beacon neighborhoods
Beacon of Hope Resource Center is excited to embark on this new phase of
neighborhood mapping. Infrastructure mapping locates and maps problem areas in neighborhoods like potholes, missing
street lights, raised manholes, clogged storm drains, and more.
By keeping track of infrastructure problems in our neighborhoods and mapping them, we can provide integral information to city departments who can address the issues, while simultaneously creating a comprehensive visual representation of our neighborhood conditions.
Beacon Neighborhoods have already begun infrastructure mapping: Lakewood has surveyed and completed a map (see image above) and Carrollton Riverbend is currently surveying.
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Road Home Offices Now Located in City Hall
Analysts from Road Home, Small Rental Property Program, and Hazard
Mitigation Grant Program will be available to assist applicants and
provide answers to case-specific questions at the new location in City Hall. The State Office of Community Development--Disaster Recovery Unit has opened an office in New Orleans City Hall to address the needs of the New Orleans community. The office is located on the 8th Floor and is open Monday through Friday 9:00-4:00 by appointment.
Office of Community Development
City Hall, 8th Floor
1300 Perdido Steet
504-658-8880
For more information on OCD and recovery fund programs, click here.
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Forward New Orleans' first Progress Report
on the New Administration
 Forward New Orleans, a group of more than 30 diverse civic, neighborhood, and business organizations, has released a report on the progress of the new city administration to date.
The report covers seven main issues including crime, blight, finance, and more. Overall, Forward New Orleans reports that the new administration is on the right track: "After the first 100 days of a new Council and new Administration, the
results are encouraging. While there is still much to do, we commend
our city leaders for taking positive steps toward meeting their pledge
and commitment to the citizens of New Orleans."
Click here to read the full report.
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Burbank Gardens in the News
AOL News Feature Story
This August, Beacon neighborhood Burbank Gardens was
featured in an AOL News story exploring the neighborhood's progress and
challenges that remain in the five years after Hurricane Katrina.
The article, "The Families Who Could Decide New Orleans'
Fate," follows resident efforts to revitalize their neighborhood in the wake of
Katrina. "'Jump-starting a neighborhood that's been destroyed was
tougher than anyone dreamed'...says Meg O'Connell, who moved back in the fall of
2006 and now heads the Burbank Gardens Neighborhood Association."
Tina Marquardt, executive director of Beacon of Hope, voices
the worries that many Burbank Gardens residents and activists share: "We've
made a lot of progress in the five years, but we're afraid we're hitting a wall.
Everyone who would and could build
something has done it. Ten years from
now, we may not be much further along. It's scary."
"Still, life in Burbank Gardens improves with each new house
that goes up. Every new family means one
less blighted lot."
To read the full story and view video, click here.
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Mirabeau Gardens Homeowner Thanks Beacon of Hope
"In spite of Hurricane Katrina and
the Drywall, I feel blessed."
Our house was being built the summer Hurricane Katrina came,
August, 2005. The water was 8 ft high in my neighborhood...The house sat for
about 2 years before it was completed. I moved in the end of April 2007. There
were no programs for my home, and insurance didn't cover my losses because we
didn't live in it prior to Katrina. I didn't know until September 2009 that my
home was built with toxic Chinese Drywall. My son had been very sick with
Asthma, and I could not figure out why...I moved out the following month because [my son's] condition continued to deteriorate. I moved
him from Children's H ospital to an apartment in Metairie, and got a lawyer. My
homeowner's insurance has denied our claim to date, and the banks won't
authorize a loan because of the condition of the house.
Your volunteering has made it possible for my family to get our
home back, and for that I thank you.
I was introduced to Beacon of Hope through an apartment neighbor of
mine... [She] would be walking her dog, and we
sort of developed a relationship over the months. One day, she said she thought
she knew of...an organization that could help me. She contacted [the Volunteer Department] with Beacon of Hope. [A Beacon Volunteer Coordinator] came by
the house. We sat on the front steps and talked. He left Beacon of Hope but
said Ashley would take care of us, and she has. He started the process, and Ashley
has continued supporting us.
[We are] now finishing cataloging
the drywall. We store [the samples] in a
climate controlled storage shed at UHAUL in Metairie. The next step is hiring
the electrician, plumber, and AC subcontractors.
I said this to Ashley last week, "In spite of Hurricane Katrina and
the Drywall, I feel blessed."
How do you explain this, you can't. That so much good would come
together at one time for my family. I want all of you to know that I appreciate
what you do and have done for my family. I feel connected to all of you, and
hope that you will call, e-mail, and come by when you are in New Orleans.
Thank you doesn't seem adequate for what you all have done, but I
will say it anyway, THANK YOU!
-Cassandra
For more information on volunteer opportunities with Beacon of Hope, contact Heather, Volunteer Coordinator, at 504-309-5120 or Heather@lakewoodbeacon.org
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Beacon of Hope Exhibited
at the Louisiana State Museum
Denise Thornton, Founder of Beacon of Hope, will be featured in the Louisiana State Museum's "Katrina & Beyond" exhibit opening October 26th, 2010. The exhibit will feature a multimedia representation of the individual and communal experiences of Hurricane Katrina.
"Living with Hurricanes documents the human struggle in
the face of a natural disaster, incorporating everything from
survivors' personal mementos to their thoughts and feelings.
It documents how the recovery has brought about innovations - turning the region into a laboratory of new ideas."
- Museum Director, Sam Rykels
For more information on the exhibit, click here. |
 Big Grill Event
Robért Fresh Market will play host to the "world's largest" touring grill when Johnsonville Sausage Big Taste Grill arrives in Lakeview.
Bratwurst will be grilled from 11am to 4pm on Sunday, September 26, 2010 at 135 Robert E. Lee Blvd.
The Johnsonville Big Taste Grill is no ordinary backyard barbecue.
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 Harrison Avenue
Market Place
October 13th at 801 Harrison Avenue (Across from
Starbucks)
5-8:30 pm
Live music, 70+ vendors, great food and fun for
all
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Mission:
Leading the way home, Beacon of Hope Resource Center provides
a model for recovery in neighborhoods devastated by Hurricane Katrina, as well
as other areas affected by disaster. Providing information
and resources, encouraging
civic action, and fostering repopulation form the foundation on which
we build and grow. Beacon of Hope empowers residents to
facilitate their own recovery while providing a hub of resident driven
activities and a safe environment to create the synergy essential for
restoring
viable neighborhoods and improve the overall quality of life for
residents.
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Beacon of Hope Resource Center
145 Robert E. Lee Blvd., Suite 200
New Orleans, LA 70124
504-309-5120
www.lakewoodbeacon.org
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