Reopening of Home Brings Hope and Bright Future to Louisiana

More than 150 people gathered at Boys Town Louisiana’s Bienville Home to celebrate a long-awaited sign of rebuilding – the reopening of the home since Hurricane Katrina damaged it five years earlier.

The home served as a place of hope for the many children who came through its doors for the residential program. Now it can once more fulfill its purpose for children.

“The meaning of this occasion for me is captured in the promise of the Boys Town mission and the words of Father Boes,” said Dennis Dillon, Boys Town Louisiana Executive Director. “I recall standing on the levee by Lake Ponchartrain only weeks after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina when Father Boes assured me that ‘Boys Town will not abandon the children of Louisiana.’”

Spirits were high at Boys Town Louisiana as last minute touches were made to the home before the ribbon cutting ceremony kicked off the afternoon’s events. With jazz music played by the Mardi Gras Indians, a group whose roots date back to the 1600s, and tours given by Boys Town Louisiana youth, the reopening gave Boys Town Louisiana a new glow and hope for a brighter future for more youth in Louisiana.  

“Since Hurricane Katrina, Boys Town Louisiana has more than tripled the number of children and families served and is poised for further leadership in our state,” said Dr. Dillon. “The opening of the Bienville Home is one more step in the fulfillment of a very special promise to save children and families in Louisiana.”