AR: What long-term effects have your design-build programs wrought on their communities? Are community members learning new construction skills, like the Navajos, for example?

Louis: What I’ve found, especially with the Rosie Joe House, is that it afforded her the opportunity to go back to weaving rugs, which now command as much as $10,000. Previously she had to give up the loom to be a receptionist at Motel 6 or waitress somewhere else. Another woman has gone back to teaching at elementary school, whereas she was continually taking care of her parents before.