To read our full coverage on the historic flooding in Baton Rouge, click here.
When the Baton Rouge chapter of Habitat for Humanity opened up applications for home gutting after massive flooding hit the area, it quickly eclipsed the 1,000 plateau with 50 to 100 more coming in each day. The nonprofit group, which works out of a second-floor office in a nondescript building in Baton Rouge, specializes in building new homes for people in need. Now, though, it has a different focus: gutting and rebuilding.
“When we saw what the need was we felt that we needed to respond because we are about housing, and that was what was most significantly impacted,” says Lynn Clark, executive director.
Habitat’s new construction projects were put on hold to address the flood damage, but Frank LeDoux, construction director, was happy to say that work at one site was set to resume less than a month after the floods.
Still, Habitat has shifted nearly all of its resources to help flood victims, including its loyal stable of volunteers, many of whom were affected as well.
“Every day we try to remind ourselves ‘one house at a time,’” says Clark. “Because if you don’t it’s very overwhelming and hard to get your arms around what you need to do.”
Habitat is prioritizing requests by those who are elderly, disabled, ill, and single parents with small children. “We feel that those will be the most significantly impacted who can’t help themselves,” says Clark.
To volunteer or contribute to Habitat’s efforts in the Baton Rouge area, go to habitatbr.org.
“Every house that we can bring back will, I think, have an exponential effect and help other people see that we can do it and keep that ball rolling,” Clark adds. “But it is going to be a very long process.”
