NEW ORLEANS – The Federal Emergency Management Agency recently announced nearly half-a-million dollars in recovery aid to a local nonprofit, the Family Center of Hope, bringing the federal agency’s overall Katrina and Rita recovery support for  private, nonprofits within Louisiana to approximately $1.3 billion.    

“Louisiana’s recovery continues to progress through joint efforts,” said FEMA’s Louisiana Recovery Office Deputy Director of Programs Andre Cadogan. “Nonprofits, such as the Family Center of Hope in New Orleans, are key recovery partners, driving overall growth through providing essential community services to local residents.”  

As a community center, The Family Center of Hope, located at 4137 Washington Avenue, offers social services, including counseling, tutoring, and conflict resolution and outreach programs at local schools.

“The Family Center of Hope is very thankful and excited to receive these funds from FEMA for the completion of our project. We have served this community well for more than 20 years, and we will maintain our strong partnership with the city of New Orleans and our state officials to ensure that our new facility continues to address the many social ills plaguing children and their families in this community,” said Family Center of Hope Executive Director Patricia Watson.

During Hurricane Katrina, the community center’s roof was significantly damaged, allowing rain waters to enter the facility, which caused second floor damages. Likewise, approximately eight feet of floodwaters inundated and destroyed the first floor. As a result, the Family Center of Hope applied for and initially received both Community Block Grants and Capital Outlay Grants to fund the majority of necessary repair work.

Still, there were remaining repair costs, and in 2011, the Family Center of Hope became aware of their eligibility as a nonprofit to also apply for FEMA aid under the agency’s Public Assistance Program. Their request for recovery assistance recently resulted in FEMA providing $445,377 for eligible, Katrina-related building repairs not previously funded under CBDG and COG.

With remaining repairs underway, the Family Center of Hope community center will soon maintain the same capacity and function as it did pre-Katrina. It is anticipated to reopen in the summer of 2013.

Editors: For more information on Louisiana disaster recovery, visit www.fema.gov/latro.

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When FEMA approves projects through its supplemental Public Assistance grant, the funds are made available to the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security & Emergency Preparedness, who disburses them to the applicant for eligible work completed.

The Public Assistance program works with state and local officials to fund recovery measures and the rebuilding of government and certain private nonprofit organizations’ buildings, as well as roads, bridges and water and sewer plants. In order for the process to be successful, federal, state and local partners coordinate to draw up project plans, fund these projects and oversee their completion.

FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.