Partnership works to transform communities

Jackson, Miss. – Call it “Extreme Makeover: Low Income Edition.”

Five hundred Mississippi houses will be repaired and weatherized under a ground-breaking program that unites the Mississippi Department of Human Services, Habitat for Humanity/Metro Jackson and Entergy Mississippi, Inc.

The Weatherization Assistance Program will kick off Saturday, July 24 from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. at the Jackson Medical Mall. The program’s partners will identify and qualify eligible homeowners. In this first phase, 300 Habitat homes in the metro Jackson area will be selected for the free upgrade.

“Currently, we’re performing maintenance and repairs on some of the existing houses through a preservation program that’s funded by a grant from the Federal Home Loan Bank,” said Cindy Griffin, executive director of the Metro Jackson Habitat for Humanity. “WAP will dovetail with these other renovation efforts and help significantly increase the impact on homeowners and communities.”

The Weatherization Assistance Program will focus on special needs families and houses that are typically at least 10 years old. Funds from the program will be used to reduce energy costs for eligible homeowners by making their homes more energy efficient. WAP focuses primarily on helping the elderly, disabled and low-income families with young children.

“We’re working to transform communities by concentrating efforts in a specific geographic area and partnering with agencies and organizations to serve all of the needs of the communities’ low-income residents,” said Liz Brister, manager of external affairs for Entergy Mississippi, Inc. “The goal is to improve the energy efficiency and, ultimately, the financial stability of the selected households.”

Entergy Mississippi will sponsor Saturday’s enrollment and MDHS and Habitat officials will qualify homes for the ambitious program. Event participants will also receive information on energy efficiency and other low-income programs.

“The Mississippi Department of Human Services will provide access and information about other social services for low-income families, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), childcare and LIHEAP utility bill payment assistance to raise awareness about additional resources that may be available to them,” said MDHS Executive Director Don Thompson.

The Salvation Army and the United Way will be on site to provide other services, such as free tax preparation and applying for the Earned Income Tax Credit.

The 500 selected homes will be evaluated by comparing kilowatt usage on a month-to-month bass. Households in the program are expected to achieve an average savings of approximately 20 percent to 30 percent per household.

Entergy Mississippi, Inc. provides electricity to more than 435,000 customers in 45 counties. It is a subsidiary of Entergy Corporation. Entergy Corporation is an integrated energy company engaged primarily in electric power production and retail distribution operations. Entergy owns and operates power plants with approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, and it is the second-largest nuclear generator in the United States. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.7 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.

Habitat for Humanity/Metro Jackson is an ecumenical group of concerned Christians that believes everyone deserves a decent place to live. Working in partnership with low-income families and using volunteer labor and donated materials whenever possible, the organization is building basic, affordable houses that are then sold to families at cost with no profit or interest. A Habitat homeowner, with the help of family and friends, is required to invest “sweat equity” hours working on their and others’ homes.

-30-
entergy-mississippi.com
Twitter: @EntergyMediaMS