- Back in March, 100 Black Men of Greater Lafayette were selected to receive a $200,000 national grant from Republic Services.
- Now demolition of blighted properties at Pershing Street has started so they can build the brand new facility.
- The facility will serve the 100 Black Men of Greater Lafayette so they can further achieve their mission statement of mentoring, education, health and wellness and economic empowerment.
The 100 purchased three blighted properties on Pershing Street using a $200,000 dollar grant that was given through a nationwide program by Republic Services’ National Neighborhood Promise Program.
The program helps to directly support and conduct community clean-ups and aid in construction around distressed neighborhoods.
The 100 Black Men hope to revitalize the area and provide a mentor center for the youth and to have safe space for them in order to provide services for them as well as community projects. Alton Trahan is president of the chapter is grateful for this partnership and hopes this grant can further assist the children in Lafayette.
“It’s a huge benefit, number one the 100 Black Men our mission is to mentor youth in the community,” Trahan says. “We work in 4 areas mentoring education, health and wellness, and economic empowerment. So bringing in our programs into to this location is gonna be awesome, not only for us but for the community as well.”
The mentor center is expected to be completed by 2024.