Joseph Lockwood, one of the project leaders overseeing revitalization efforts in the impoverished New Iberia community, grew up in this once vibrant neighborhood, located in the town’s west end area…

But returning some 40 years later, after retiring from a successful career as a management executive, Joseph discovered a badly neglected neighborhood, awash in poverty, blight and poor health. We recently spent the day with Joseph, now beaming with high hopes for a new way of life in this struggling corner of Louisiana. Below, Joseph explains how $1 million in grant funding from BCBSLAF’s Challenge for a Healthier Louisiana will positively impact a community that’s been neglected and forgotten for far too long…