ReZoom

Region #6: New Orleans, LA

The Phoenix of New Orleans (PNOLA) was founded by Tulane University medical student Paul Ikemire in response to the tragic effect of Hurricane Katrina on the city of New Orleans. PNOLA's main goal is to rebuild the devastated neighborhood of Lower Mid-City hand in hand with the residents. Before the storm, the community was seen as a working-class neighborhood and home to schools, churches, businesses and historic landmarks. Today, the organization strives to bring the community back to life with the help of volunteers from across the country.

Winning Regional Essay

"Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans in the late summer of 2005, and damaged 80 percent of the city. In an area of the nation that was already suffering from inadequate health care, failing public schools, and extreme poverty, the hurricane exasperated the problems. In the Tulane/Gravier neighborhood, which lies in close proximity to the French Quarter, a group of over 4,000 citizens lived in extreme levels of poverty and under horrible conditions. This was not acceptable way of living. For years, an area that bordered the Central Business District was neglected, as the city's major resources were allocated elsewhere; unfortunately, urban decay is not unique in the U.S. Cities across this nation have suffered from poor civic, private and public management. PNOLA cannot solve all the problems in the urban areas of our country, but it can begin by creating a model for change in one low-income neighborhood. Since the city has not been able to help many of our citizens recover from such a horrible disaster, PNOLA can complete many of the services that the city is unable to provide."

"With our ability to have a full-time staff and recruit hundreds of volunteers, we are able to gut people's homes, landscape public open spaces, and clean the streets. In addition, we act as a neighborhood association that advocates for the well-being and prosperity of the current homeowners and tenants. PNOLA works with outside resources that have experience in community development, real estate developers, business owners, health care advocates, education reformists, artists and other support organizations, boosting the livelihood of the neighborhood. The city will take notice, and supplement our services with some of their own. The idea of PNOLA generates from our awareness of the underlying problems and then the energy to think about effective ways to implement social change. We want to create a model for organizations to implement successful changes in both disaster areas, but also low-income areas. With a full-time staff that can help the neighborhood and its residents receive the attention they deserve, there is the potential to implement this model in other cities around the world."

If They Won the $100,000 National Award ...

"The heart-breaking outcome of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans has had a unique outcome of bringing out the very best in the human spirit. To date, PNOLA has worked with over 600 volunteers from schools, corporate groups, churches and the like. These short-term volunteers pay all of their own expenses and often stay in PNOLA-supported dorm style housing. Because of these efforts, PNOLA has gutted, mold re-mediated and secured over 70 properties in the Lower Mid-City area."

"Our mission has naturally evolved over time as conditions shift and because of that, PNOLA needs outside financial assistance now more than ever. Gutting work makes best and highest use of unskilled volunteers, but as we move into the rebuilding phase, our materials costs are soaring and it is important to retain skilled workers. We have also added neighborhood services such as the much-needed tutoring in our local elementary school, running a book drive for neighborhood daycare centers and assisting residents with the myriad and often confusing paperwork they need to complete to receive insurance and Road Home payments."

 

"There is so much more work to be done in New Orleans with no agreed upon time line from any entity to complete it. Experts estimate it may take up to 20 years for the city to become "normal" again and that's assuming Mother Nature gives the city a rest from the always volatile hurricane seasons. What we from PNOLA pledge is that we are here for the long haul, regardless of what others speculate. What we believe sets our organization apart from other non-profits is that all of this work is being completed by non-salaried staffers and short term volunteers; that is, all donations to PNOLA go right to the bottom line of neighborhood recovery and toward purchases such as sheet rock, roofing, paint, flooring and so forth. We appreciate your consideration in this wonderful ReZoom contest."

Mission Statement

PNOLA is a non-profit neighborhood recovery association devoted to vastly improving living conditions in the blighted Lower Mid-city area of New Orleans.