Community Renewal International

"Oh, I hope this is the winning ticket," the woman said, clutching a pink slip of paper in her hand.

"I have the winning ticket right here! But I'll have you over for dinner after I move in. How do you like your steak?"

They laughed like old friends as a third person with a big smile came into the room and let them know they were both wrong: "I bought the winning ticket two weeks ago. I just came back to see my new house!"

The House for Hope — a first-time fundraising raffle that generated the funds needed to start a new Community Renewal Friendship House — was about so much more than a beautiful new house that would go to one fortunate person.

This was about strangers becoming friends. This was about dreams held high by travertine and heart pine floors.

This was about neighbors supporting their community and about a community coming together to support its neediest residents.

If anyone thought it would be drudgery to work for a day selling tickets at the house, they were quickly proved wrong. We were inspired, entertained and touched by so many people.

From Hurricane Katrina evacuees who still need a place to call home, to the young women with June weddings who need a first home, to the widow who volunteered as a way of coping with her grief, to the laid-off couple who wanted to benefit our city and if they could win a house in the process — why not?

I found it interesting that Diane Egans, the woman who won the House for Hope, had not claimed it or begged God for it or measured it for drapes. She did not even see the house until after she won it.

She bought her ticket back in March, just because she wanted to help the community.

The meek will inherit the earth, right? We were so touched by her reaction — she was completely overwhelmed — and by the fact that she is helping to raise her son and daughter-in-law's two children while they are serving with the U.S. Army in Iraq.

All of us at Community Renewal would like to thank the countless number of people who helped to make the House for Hope a wonderful success on so many levels.

There are far too many people to name, but we must salute homebuilder David Leeth, who oversaw construction of the beautiful four-bedroom home; Dixey Robertson and her staff at the Northwest Louisiana Home Builders Association; James Smith and his team at KSLA News 12; Matt Locke, who provided the land in The Haven for the house; and so many others, from businesses who donated materials to the thousands of people who bought a ticket.

Your support will help us build our 10th Community Renewal Friendship House, this time in Shreveport's Queensborough neighborhood.

A Friendship House is a safe haven, a place of hope in itself for youth and families living in a low-income, high-crime area.

The Friendship House offers after-school and summer programs, neighborhood service projects, and many other activities that help neighbors work together in trust and confidence to make their neighborhood a safer, more caring place.

Finally, don't forget that you can still get a ticket to win this year's St. Jude Dream Home.

The drawing for that house is July 26, with proceeds going to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital to find cures for children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases. Visit www.stjude.org to learn more.

David Westerfield, of Shreveport, is the director of communications for Community Renewal International.