Editor's Note
Welcome to the first issue of Porch Paper.
This publication was created to capture the heart of the 2026 Carter Work Project at Langston Park. Not just the homes being built, but the people, stories, and community behind them. As volunteers, partners, neighbors, and supporters come together for this historic effort, we wanted a space to share why this work matters.
At Atlanta Habitat, we believe homeownership is about more than four walls. It is about stability and opportunity and setting the foundation for future generations. That is exactly what is taking root at Langston Park.
In this first issue, you will meet Kyrié, one of the future homeowners whose joy, faith, and vision reflect the spirit of this community. Her story is a reminder that every nail, every wall, and every act of service is connected to something bigger: the dream of a brighter future and a quality life.
Thank you for being part of this moment with us. We are proud to welcome you to Porch Paper and even prouder to help tell the stories that make Langston Park so special.
Why Carter Work Project 2026 Is So Special
The 2026 Carter Work Project comes at a remarkable time for the City of Atlanta, Atlanta Habitat, and Habitat for Humanity International.
Thirty years ago, this city hosted the 1996 Olympics, and Atlanta Habitat doubled the number of homes it built each year in an effort to help meet the affordable housing needs of our rapidly growing city back then. Now, as Atlanta looks ahead to the FIFA World Cup, the organization is scaling once again.
But this season of growth is about more than audacious goals. This year also marks the 50th anniversary of Habitat for Humanity International, a milestone that reminds us how many lives have changed through the vision of affordable homeownership.
It is also a moment to honor the lasting legacy of President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter. Though they are no longer with us, their example continues to inspire people around the world to put faith into action through service, humility, and love for neighbors.
Their spirit is still very alive here in Atlanta.
Atlanta Habitat is expanding the types of homes it builds, investing more deeply in aspiring homeowners, and shifting from scattered-site construction to community development. Thirty years ago, building fifty homes each year became a defining marker of Atlanta Habitat's growth. The next chapter will include multi-unit and multi-story townhomes alongside single-family homes, expanding homeownership opportunities for more Atlanta families.
As Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter were advocates of long-term affordable homeownership solutions, the 2026 Carter Work Project is not only a historic build, but also a continuation of the example the Carters set for all of us.
That is what makes this year so special. It is a chance to honor a powerful legacy, celebrate 50 years of impact, and keep building toward the future with the same spirit that brought us here.
Langston Park: Serving More Families
As Atlanta grows, so does the need for affordable homeownership, and that reality is shaping how Atlanta Habitat builds.
At Langston Park, we are continuing an important shift: Evolving from singular home builds to developing whole communities to scale our impact and serve more families, faster. It is a practical response to a very real challenge. Land is finite and expensive, especially in a fast-growing city like Atlanta. At the same time, the demand for affordable homeownership remains at an all-time high. For Atlanta Habitat, that means thinking creatively about how best to use land, reach more families, and build in ways that are sustainable for the future.
By utilizing larger parcels of land, Atlanta Habitat can create more homeownership opportunities in one place while also building something deeper than individual houses: community.
That approach has already proven to be successful. At Browns Mill Village, Atlanta Habitat demonstrated that it is possible to thoughtfully design and build an affordable, mixed-density homeownership community with modern amenities. Today, Browns Mill Village stands as a replicable model and beautiful home to 134 homeowner families, a major milestone that helped shape what is now possible at Langston Park.
This work is about increasing affordable homeownership opportunities for Atlantans, and much more. It is about building smarter, helping families build financial stability and wealth, and creating neighborhoods where connection and opportunity can grow side by side.
Langston Park reflects the future of Atlanta Habitat's work: thoughtful, sustainable, and rooted in the belief that when you build community, you transform lives.
Building Kyrié's Future
She can picture the colors. She can picture the guest room that will double as the office. She can picture the quiet peace awaiting her after a long day of teaching, when she finally walks through the door of a place that is fully her own. She has even considered names for her future home: maybe Pooh's Palace, or Kyrié's Castle.
A future Langston Park homeowner and current teacher, Kyrié says her Atlanta Habitat journey has been one of the least stressful parts of her life, something she credits to the support, structure, and sense of family she has experienced throughout the process.
Homeownership is also part of a larger family legacy. Kyrié first learned about Atlanta Habitat years ago while watching her mother begin the process of buying a home. Seeing her mother save, plan, and prepare, gave Kyrié an early example of what was possible. Now, she is walking that same path for herself.
As a member of the Carter Work Project homebuyer cohort, Kyrié says one of the most meaningful parts of the process has been building community long before move-in day. Between classes, group chats, and regular visits to Langston Park, she already feels connected to the people who will soon become her neighbors.
Kyrié often drives by the site to watch the neighborhood unfold. What was once a still stretch of possibility is now taking shape, frame by frame, into something tangible and full of promise.
She speaks about her future home with excitement, faith, and intention. She plans to write scriptures inside the walls, pray over the land, and create a peaceful place that reflects her identity and destiny.
For Kyrié, this journey is about more than buying a house. It is about setting conditions for success and legacy.
And when volunteers arrive to help build during Carter Work Project, she already knows what she'll be saying with a smile: "That one's mine."
Atlanta Shows Up
Atlanta is a city that shows up.
When volunteers, sponsors, churches, companies, organizations and partners understand that they can help create real change, they lean in with everything they have. That spirit is part of what makes the Carter Work Project in Atlanta so powerful.
As City of Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens says, "Atlanta is a group project." Community-built, sustainable homeownership is one of the clearest examples of what can happen when people come together with shared purpose. It takes time, partnership, and belief in something bigger than yourself. This is the Atlanta way.
What makes the Carter Work Project especially meaningful is how visible that impact becomes. In just one week, volunteers and partners will raise walls, frame rooms, and move families closer to the dream of homeownership.
There are not many opportunities where you can give your time and see life-changing differences take shape so quickly. But this is one of them.
That is the beauty of Atlanta. When the city comes together, you can feel it. And at Langston Park, you will be able to see it too.
