After months of coordinated work between public sector stakeholders, private donors, and community volunteers, the HAPI housing initiative has marked a major milestone with the official completion of its Yorks development, a project organizers frame as a powerful example of what collective community action can achieve in Antigua.
Veldon Raggette, a representative of local nonprofit Adopt a Family which is involved in the initiative, opened up about the hurdles the project faced along the way. From supply chain delays to unforeseen construction setbacks, the team navigated multiple obstacles that threatened to derail the build. Ultimately, Raggette emphasized, it was the unified commitment of every contributing group that pushed the project across the finish line.
Raggette extended specific gratitude to senior government figures who backed the initiative, including Antigua’s Tourism Minister Charles Fernandez, Senators Abena St. Luce and Angelica O’Donoghue, and Minister for Social and Urban Transformation Rawdon Turner, along with private supporter Tony Greener. Beyond institutional and political partners, he also highlighted the irreplaceable on-the-ground contributions of community members, with special recognition going to Lesroy “Rastaman” George, Oliver Looby, and the dozens of local volunteers who dedicated their time and labor to the project.
Additional acknowledgments were given to Mary Baltimore and the national Social Protection Board for their administrative and financial support, as well as a work team from His Majesty’s Prison that provided extra labor to speed up construction. Project lead Lorna Lewis also earned special praise from Raggette for her consistent, unwavering commitment to seeing the initiative through to completion.
The HAPI program was founded with a core mission: to deliver safe, improved housing for vulnerable, low-income families across Antigua, addressing long-standing gaps in accessible, adequate housing for marginalized communities. The completion of the Yorks project marks one more step forward in that ongoing mission, setting a blueprint for future collaborative housing developments across the island.