But we have 3,000 houses that are gone , and we would love to see those houses come back . '' Darden and Pitt felt compelled to help provide Green and his family a second chance , and on July 9 Green officially became a proud homeowner once again . Getting a fresh start has helped Green and his family deal with the tragedy that turned their lives upside down and took away their loved ones . `` That 's what gave me the strength to endure all that we 've been through , '' Green said . `` People constantly coming by , volunteers constantly coming by . People that really care about us and let us know that we were n't in this alone . It gave us the hope that one day we would come back and be a community again . '' Watch as Green talks about his family 's tragedies and life in New Orleans after Katrina '' The Make It Right Foundation has built 15 homes in the Lower 9th so far ; the group 's goal is to have 150 built by the end of next year . Darden said the program is
NEW ORLEANS , Louisiana -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- As floodwaters washed away homes in the Lower 9th Ward , Robert Green watched with horror as his mother got swept away in the storm . Robert Green stands on the porch of his family 's FEMA trailer in front of his new home earlier this year . Four months later , Green and other family members found Joyce Green 's remains in the splintered wreckage of the house where they left her . Robert Green 's granddaughter Shanay also drowned the night Hurricane Katrina hit . Green spent almost the entire last four years living in a small FEMA trailer on his land , sharing his story with anyone who came through the Lower 9th . One of the people he met was Tom Darden , executive director of the Make It Right Foundation , Brad Pitt 's nonprofit vision for building green , sustainable houses in the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans . Only a handful of homes have returned to the Lower 9th , one of the areas hardest hit by the killer storm . `` We have 14 neighbors and feel crowded , '' Green said ``