A House For Thinh
Community Partners : East Biloxi Coordination Center
Building Partners: Project Rehab
Thinh’s house was where she and her husband raised their two sons after immigrating to Biloxi from Vietnam. Thinh’s husband had a shrimping business prior to Hurricane Katrina and has since passed away. Thinh has worked for many years in the seafood industry, as an oyster shucker. Today, she works as a cook for a local casino. Thinh’s property is in an especially low-lying area of Biloxi; her house was completely destroyed in the storm.
As a result, Thinh’s new home needed to be designed to accommodate the new base flood elevation requirements. Her new home is elevated 10 feet and is situated to fit within the existing oak and magnolia trees that surround her lot. She requested an open living space, where her family could get together while she cooks for everyone. She also requested a bedroom arrangement that would give her privacy from her son and 7-year-old grandson, who would be moving in with her. The floor plan reflects these requests and made it easy to integrate a large, covered front porch and also a large screened porch in the back of the house, giving Thinh an incredible view of the Back Bay of Biloxi.
Thinh’s house was constructed in just two weeks by volunteers that generously gave their time, energy, and supplemental funding. These volunteers were organized through the hard work of Project Rehab and the East Biloxi Coordination Center.
