New Orleans CityBusiness (New Orleans, LA)
October 17, 2007
Armenian pontiff works on Habitat for Humanity homes in N.O.
His Holiness Karekin II, leader of the Armenian Church and supreme
patriarch of all Armenians, rolled up his sleeves in New Orleans
today to help build a home in Habitat for Humanity’s Musicians’
Village.
The 56-year-old pontiff visited New Orleans as a gesture of goodwill
from Armenia, which is still recovering from the devastating 1988
earthquake that left 500,000 people homeless and inspired his work
with Habitat for Humanity.
The pontiff has worked with Habitat for Humanity in Armenia by
planting trees, painting walls and hammering nails while helping
build more than 70 homes.
In April 2006, the Armenian Church and Habitat for Humanity signed an
agreement of long-term cooperation to create His Holiness Karekin II
Work Project.
The pontiff personally spearheaded efforts to build 37 homes across
Armenia, giving witness to the ancient Armenian tradition of charity,
volunteerism and social concern as part of the His Holiness Karekin
II Work Project in 2007.
In September 2006, Habitat For Humanity Armenia drew together more
than 300 volunteers from Europe, the United States, Armenia and other
countries to help build a 24-unit condominium building.
The pontiff presides over the Supreme Spiritual Council (the Armenian
Church’s governing college of bishops and lay persons). He is the
leader of the world’s 7 million Armenian Christians.
The pontiff worked on Musicians’ Village, a community for musicians
and other families displaced by Hurricane Katrina. Conceived by New
Orleans natives Harry Connick Jr. and Branford Marsalis, Musicians’
Village is being constructed in the Upper Ninth Ward, where an 8-acre
parcel will hold 70 single-family homes built by volunteers, donors,
sponsors and low-income families.
Since groundbreaking in March 2006, 40 homes have been completed.
Elder-friendly duplexes are being readied for senior members of the
community and the Ellis Marsalis Center for Music, a 150-seat
performance space with state-of-the-art lighting and sound, a
recording studio, classrooms and rehearsal spaces. The facility will
be available to Musician’s Village residents, students and artists
citywide.