¡Bienvenidos! or Welcome to Puentes New Orleans, Incorporated, the first Latino serving, Latino run community development organization in the Greater New Orleans Area.  On this site you will learn about Puentes and its mission, who supports our organization, why we came into existence, and much more.  But before you leave this page, I would like to take the opportunity to express my gratitude as the Executive Director of this start-up organization.  I want to thank you first for your support and your time.  By simply landing on our page you demonstrate to us that we are doing work that is being noticed.  Indeed, we need to be noticed because for many generations Latinos have lived in the New Orleans area without adequate services, adequate attention, adequate support and leadership.  Katrina brought us new neighbors, an influx of new migrant workers, most of whom were and are Latinos, both Spanish and Portugese speakers, among others.  We are glad they are here and we want them to stay.  Puentes New Orleans, Incorporated came to be so that it could help them stay and become integral, vital participants in our community.  But even just as importanty, Puentes came to be so that we could improve services, create a stronger voice, become more united, and become more active as Latinos who have been here for generations.

An outsider to the New Orleans area may not know this, but Latinos were living and thriving in the New Orleans area long before Katrina.  New Orleans itself has ties to Latin America that date back many generations.  The first Spanish language newspaper in the United States was founded in New Orleans.  The French Quarter architecture that gives the Vieux Carre its appeal is actually Colonial Spanish architectural design that can be found in any Colonial city in Latin America.  Even the famous Creole dish, jambalaya, is derived from the Spanish cuisine paella, among others.  So it's only natural that New Orleans welcomes and supports a new wave of immigrant Latinos while at the same time support and prop up the long resident Latinos who have been here. 

Así que, pienso que hemos llegado a tiempo.  La comunidad necesita una organización sin fines de lucro como Puentes que puede iniciar esfuerzos en varias avenidas de desarrollo comunitario.  Nosotros apenas estamos creciendo para poder servir a nuestra comunidad Latina de Nueva Orleans. Nuestra meta es ayudar a la comunidad Latina aumentar su capital y mejorar su abilidad de obtener acceso a servicios públicos y oportunidades económicas. En los años que vienen, esperamos tener éxito con varios excelentes progamas que ayudarán a la comunidad Latina salir adelante.

So it is with great pleasure that I welcome you to our site.  If you have any questions after you have had a chance to read about us, don't forget to visit the contact us page and find out how to reach us.  I look forward to hearing from you and to sharing more information as we grow and move forward.