LEH Awards $65,000 in Emergency Readiness Grants
The Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, with the support of the State of Louisiana, has awarded $65,000 in grants to 17 nonprofit cultural organizations across 11 parishes to fortify Louisiana’s cultural and heritage organizations against threats from future emergencies and to mitigate impacts from previous disasters.
Natural disasters, such as hurricanes, floods, and a range of other types of emergency events, pose serious threats to Louisiana’s critical cultural institutions, including museums, archives, historic sites, and more. LEH’s Emergency Readiness Grants help organizations better prepare for and respond to potential threats, reducing vulnerability and putting in place clear and current strategies for mitigating the effects of future emergencies.
Cultural organizations can use the grants for purposes such as developing emergency plans, supporting staff training, helping cover insurance storm deductibles, moving servers to the cloud, or making physical repairs and improvements to structures that reduce vulnerability.
The Opelousas Museum, the recipient of a 2025 Emergency Readiness Grant, used the funds it received to create an emergency readiness pocket plan, an emergency readiness supply kit, and to repair and mitigate threats to the museum building, including trimming trees to prevent damage from falling branches, repairing its roof to avoid further water damage, and replacing dirt and plants with gravel to deter termites.
“The Opelousas Museum is the only actual museum in town. It’s a precious asset for the community. The area has been harmed by storms and humidity on multiple occasions. The museum strives to protect its collection, which provides education for the community,” said Director Patrice Melnick. “This grant allowed us to make building improvements to help secure the space. Also, it gave us the motivation to create an emergency preparedness plan. All of these steps help us fulfill our mission to protect the artifacts that tell the story of Opelousas history and culture. Through LEH support, we have protected the building, created a readiness plan, and organized supplies should an emergency occur.”
Melnick said the grant also created a domino effect in the community as she worked on the museum’s emergency plan, leading to better communication with local fire and police departments, and leading the mayor of Opelousas to enlist her help revising its emergency preparedness document.
See the full list of 2026 recipients below.
Contemporary Arts Center, New Orleans
New Orleans, LA
Orleans Parish
$4,150
The East-West Foundation
Slidell, LA
St. Tammany Parish
$3,000
Ho Minti Society
Zwolle, LA
Sabine Parish
$5,000
Grant Parish Library
Colfax, LA
Grant Parish
$5,000
East Carroll Parish Library
Lake Providence, LA
East Carroll Parish
$3,000
Louisiana Landmarks Society
New Orleans, LA
Orleans Parish
$1,250
Louisiana State University Agricultural and Mechanical College and LSU Rural Life Museum
Baton Rouge, LA
East Baton Rouge Parish
$5,000
Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience
New Orleans, LA
Orleans Parish
$3,000
Operation Restoration
New Orleans, LA
Orleans Parish
$2,500
Public Radio Inc.
Baton Rouge, LA
East Baton Rouge Parish
$5,000
St. James Parish Library
Lutcher, LA
St. James Parish
$5,000
Shadows-on-the-Teche
New Iberia, LA
Iberia Parish
$5,000
Southern Forest Heritage Museum
Long Leaf, LA
Rapides Parish
$3,000
United Houma Nation, Inc
Houma, LA
Terrebonne Parish
$2,300
World Affairs Council of New Orleans
New Orleans, LA
Orleans Parish
$4,800
WWNO – New Orleans Public Radio
New Orleans, LA
Orleans Parish
$5,000
Zydeco Historical & Preservation Society, Inc
Opelousas, LA
St. Landry Parish
$3,000