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EMHE New Orleans


Jeff Junkert Construction called to ‘Extreme Dream Team’
Project to help ‘Katrina’ devastated Louisiana

When Jeff Junkert Construction teamed up with Extreme Makeover: Home Edition last summer to build a home for a deserving Billings family, it must have made an impression. This past February, the producers of the hit TV-show handpicked a “dream team” to head to Louisiana to rebuild a part of Hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans. Jeff Junkert’s name was on the short list. “This is going to be an incredible project,” Jeff said recently. In the early morning hours of March 6, 2008, the crew moved in and jump-started the lightning speed build, which involves not only a family home, but a church as well.

"Even three years later, the gulf region is still suffering in the wake of Hurricane Katrina,” said the show’s executive producer, Denise Cramsey. “It makes sense that we would need an extreme coalition of builders from all across this country to pull together and help make a difference in New Orleans for deserving families on the show."

Rebuiling Lives

The Usea family of Westwego, Louisiana was the latest family to get the life changing news with the help of Ty Pennington and a bullhorn. It’s a chance for this family to leave behind the painful memories of Hurricane Katrina and move into a new hurricane resistant home that is sure to be a safe haven for the entire family.

Brad and Laura Usea’s home was severely damaged during Hurricane Katrina. Even worse, Brad's mother Grace's home was completely destroyed leaving her, Brad's older brother Chris, and Brad's twin brother Chad all homeless. Brad and Laura took in their family without hesitation.

In February of 2007, tornados struck Westwego in the middle of the night causing more devastation to Brad and Laura's already battered home and destroying the trailer in the backyard where Chris had been living since Katrina. That night, Brad and Chad, both volunteer firefighters, came to the rescue of not just their family, but their neighbors who were trapped in their own trailer.

Local heroes to many, Brad and Chad continue to work to rebuild their community devastated by natural disasters, while living on top of each other in a single family home.

On the same lot where their current home still stands today, the "dream team" of builders, Ty and the ‘Extreme’ design team will build not just one but three bigger and stronger homes for the Usea family. The new home will have all of the space needed to give Brad and his family; Chris, Chad and Grandma Grace back their independence.

Rebuilding A Refuge

At the same time, just a few blocks away, Pastor Willie Walker will have a new place of worship and a refuge for the entire community. For two years, Pastor Walker has worked tirelessly to help the victims of Katrina, but he’s never been able to rebuild his beloved church that was destroyed by the floodwaters. Thanks to this same elite team of builders, Noah’s Ark Missionary Baptist Church will have a new place to call home.

Pastor Walker has been serving the needy community in New Orleans for 60 years by helping those most in need – addicts, AIDS patients, the homeless and the poor. He’s become a local hero to his congregation and his community acting as a father figure to those headed down the wrong path. When Katrina hit, he risked his own life going back to the devastation time and time again to rescue and save countless lives.

Jeff Junkert, who is working on Pastor Walker’s project said, “This is really about people helping people. Sometimes your neighbors are right next door and sometimes they are 2,000 miles away.”

The seven-day build in the greater New Orleans area is the show's last stop on a 50-state tour and will wrap up the show's season. The build will be March 6-14, and the two-hour episode will air as the season finale on May 18.

The Extreme Dream Team:

In a first-ever effort to put together a coalition of past builders from all over the country, “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” called on the building industry to join forces and help with what may be the toughest challenge yet – to rebuild a part of Hurricane-ravaged Louisiana. Each team from all corners of the nation has gathered volunteers, subs and trades from their home states and are in New Orleans for the week of the build.

Deltec Homes EcoBuilders
Round House Consulting Jones Construction
G&S Construction Shultz Construction
Dana Dugas Affordable Homes Inc. Barker Homes
David W. Stewart, Inc. Rutledge Builders
Sterling Homes Simmons Homes
Jeff Junkert Construction Heritage Homes
Shoemaker Homes Alure Home Improvement
Capitol Homes Atreus Homes and Communities