Posts Tagged ‘make it right’

Brad Pitt Heads to Congress

March 5th, 2009

Sometimes if you want things done, you’ve just got to do them yourself.

 

Brad Pitt founded Make It Right in 2007, a project to help build environmentally sustainable housing for those who lost their homes in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. And the dedicated humanitarian he is, he’s going to Washington to discuss his efforts to help those in need.

 

Brad’s set to meet with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi today, ostensibly to garner more support for his campaign. While some residents have already moved into their new homes, the project is an ongoing effort, with new homes still being built.

 

Brad Pitt’s Normal Life

December 4th, 2008

The words "normal" and "Brad Pitt" don’t usually seem to go together, considering the gorgeous, talented actor, loving father and generous humanitarian seems to be anything but. However, the star of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button says his family is attempting just that, a sense of normalcy, in New Orleans.

 

"It’s a place that we can actually walk on the streets," he tells Larry King. It’s the community here. It’s the people here. It’s very kind. But they also, for some reason, do not feel like they have ownership in some way or something. They’re really respectful."

 

CLICK HERE for OK!’s Ultimate Angelina Jolie gallery for pics of the couple!

 

And while paparazzi and fans are always trying to get a piece of Brad’s family with Angelina Jolie, he says their neighbors are just happy to see them out and about.

 

"Nothing more than a wave and ‘Glad you’re here,’ and let us go on our way," he reveals. "We’ve made some good friends here. It’s just a really nice (place). I don’t know how to describe it better than that. Just a place for us to be."

 

Making friends might have something to do with Brad’s dedication to his Make it Right campaign, which is working to build homes in the city’s 9th Ward, an area devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

 

"The goal is to create a template for intelligent building, he says of the housing, The goal is to rebuild all of New Orleans, all the people who want to come back. This holiday, there are families that have already moved in and will be celebrating their Christmases here, so we’re very excited."

 

Speaking of the holidays, Brad had said in the past that he and Angie wanted to try a multiceremonial celebration, to acknowledge their childrens’ array of home countries; but it seems the kids are still focused on one thing on Christmas Day.

 

"We’re still working on it. You know, we tried a little something last year, but the kids are so young, it just didn’t mean much, really," he explains. "But we’re getting there. You know, as they get older, they’ll start to understand more. Right now, it’s still presents."

 

 

Brad Pitt is Proud of His Family

December 2nd, 2008

Brad Pitt has a lot to be proud about these days: Not only is his next movie The Curious Case of Benjamin Button already creating a lot of buzz, but he’s also a dedicated, busy father who finds the time to give back to his community.

 

Angelina Jolie’s main man recently spoke to Today’s Ann Curry in the ravaged 9th Ward of New Orleans, fairly glowing with pride over the progress his Make it Right campaign has seen.

 

"Now you see it. There’s actually families here who are home for the holidays," he says of the residents who have moved in to their new houses. "And it’s really, really cool.”

 

“This time next year, you’re going to see 100 homes here,” he added, “And not only that … these homes, what you don’t see is the way they work. It’s a sunny day. Those meters are running backward. They are off the grid. This is the road to affordable housing that you see right here.”

 

In addition to the growing collection of homes, Brad and Angie also have a growing family, something else Brad treasures.

 

“I’m really proud of this family,” he reveals. “I look at my sons and my daughters, and one’s from Vietnam and one’s from Cambodia and one’s from Ethiopia, and … they’re all brothers and sisters. And they’re fighting, they’re laughing, they’re going into hysterics and staying up late, and they’re messing with their parents, and they’re driving me crazy and I’m really proud.

“I truly feel rich being around them,” he adds. “It’s a rich home, and each one of ‘em offers so much to the mix.”

 

Check out the interview below:

<iframe height="339" width="425" src="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22425001/vp/28012808#28012808" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe>

 

Brad Gives Katrina Victims a Home

October 10th, 2008

How many people can say the house they live in is all because of Brad Pitt? Well, at least six families in New Orleans 9th ward district—an area hit hard by Hurricane Katrina—can directly thank the actor for the roofs over their heads, according to the Associated Press.

 

Brad’s Make It Right project has completed six houses so far in the neighborhood, which was devastated by the hurricane three years ago.

 

Brad and Angelina Jolie, who bought a home in New Orleans about a year after Katrina hit, visisted the area with their six kids earlier this week. Gloria Guy, a 68-year-old grandmother, was there with a big hug for the actor’s big heart.

 

”I thank God for Brad Pitt,” the AP reports Gloria as saying. "I told him how much I appreciate all that he’s done for me and my family.”

 

Though only six are complete for now, there will eventually be 150 Make it Right homes, in an attempt to repopulate the neighborhood and bring back the families that once lived there.

CLICK HERE for OK!’s gallery of Angelina and Brad photos!

OK! Exclusive: Brad’s New Orleans Plan

September 2nd, 2008 / Author: OK! Staff

Since the news broke that Hurricane Gustav was set to hit New Orleans over the Labor Day weekend, many have been wondering where two of the city’s star residents and biggest rebuilding proponents — Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie — have been.

To get to the bottom of the story, OK! spoke with Virginia Miller from the Make It Right Foundation, an orginization Brad has worked closely with in recent years, helping to bring sustainable and affordable housing back to the lower income portions of New Orleans that were ravaged by 2005’s Hurricane Katrina.

According to Ms. Miller, Brad is definitely planning a trip soon to New Orleans, where he and Angelina have set up a home with their six children in the city’s French quarter. In fact, Miller tells OK!, Brad had actually been talking to her about coming down before Gustav ripped into town on Monday.

Miller tells OK! she hasn’t had a chance to speak to Brad in the last few days, and it will be at least a few days before the actor could make his way into town, as no one is currently being allowed in or out of the area.

As for the newly built and under-construction homes that Brad has made such a high-profile priority of his, Miller is happy to report to OK! that these buildings, located in the city’s 9th Ward, appear to be okay as that area wasn’t too severly hit by Gustav’s category 3 winds and rain.

Last December, when Brad appeared on the Today Show to talk about his work in New Orleans with the Make It Right foundation, he said it "is more fulfilling than any movie I’ve ever done."

Find out more at MakeItRightNola.org.

AD FPO