120-Year-Old Home Gets Critical Repairs 11 Years after Katrina

SNAP grants assist income-qualified, special-needs homeowners with critical home repairs and modifications. The grants are administered through the Hancock Resource Center (HRC), a nonprofit based in Waveland, Mississippi, that assists low-income citizens with home repairs, homebuyer counseling, and community development.

"Our partnership with the Federal Home Loan Bank helps us to better serve people and communities," said C. Jerome Brown, senior vice president and director of Community Development at The First, A National Banking Association. "Ms. Delaney-Padilla, like so many in this area, needed extra support to restore their lives, and that's what we are called to do."

The storm brought water nearly 3 feet high into Ms. Delaney-Padilla's 120-year-old home, which was already elevated 3 feet on cinder blocks.

HRC contractors gutted the walls from 4 feet down, rewired the home, and installed new sheetrock, door frames, flooring, cabinets, and countertops.

"Jean's story shows the power of resilience," said HRC Construction Coordinator Jane Stock. "It's such a great feeling to know she's in a safer home now because of HRC's support."

Ms. Delaney-Padilla is one of six homeowners in the Bay St. Louis area awarded SNAP grants in 2016 through HRC and The First. The $1 million in 2016 SNAP funding, made available in January on a first-come, first-served basis, has been exhausted.

"After Katrina, I was having issues with the power," she said. "I didn't have the money to fix the wiring. When the house finally got rewired, I could sleep so much better at night. Now I wake up, and I'm smiling. The house doesn't look like a hurricane hit it."

Since SNAP's inception in 2009, more than $10.6 million has been awarded in grants through FHLB Dallas member institutions to assist more than 2,000 families across FHLB Dallas' five-state District of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, and Texas.

"SNAP is part of FHLB Dallas' mission to assist our members in funding affordable housing in our District," said Greg Hettrick, first vice president and director of Community Investment at FHLB Dallas. "The First shares our commitment to community investment. They are a valued partner, and we appreciate the positive results they create through this program."

About The First, A National Banking Association

The First, A National Banking Association, headquartered in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, began as a dream on a back porch in South Mississippi. A group of local businessmen talked about creating a bank that would take care of business by taking care of people one customer at a time... and The First was born. Now, that dream has grown from a back porch to cities and towns all over South Mississippi, South Alabama, and Louisiana. The First is more than a bank... because it is still a group of friends building relationships and taking care of business one customer at a time!  The First currently has 32 locations and assets exceeding $1 billion.

About the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas

The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas is one of 11 district banks in the FHLBank System created by Congress in 1932. FHLB Dallas, with total assets of $49.5 billion as of March 31, 2016, is a member-owned cooperative that supports housing and community development by providing competitively priced loans and other credit products to approximately 850 members and associated institutions in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, and Texas. For more information, visit fhlb.com.

Contact:

Corporate Communications
Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas
www.fhlb.com
(214) 441-8445

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SOURCE Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas

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