Crafting Environments to Feel Like Home

ARTICLE BY VANELIS RIVERA
PHOTOGRAPHY BY KELLY MOORE CLARK

Built through extraordinary community support, the 2026 Monroe St. Jude Dream Home stands as a testament to generosity, remembrance, and the power of giving back.

In a thick torrent of May showers, a crowd gathered for a ribbon-cutting inside a newly constructed home, celebrating a project to create a lasting impact. While some mingled, others sauntered down hallways and into rooms decorated with picture-perfect finesse. There was much to revel at-elegant light fixtures, decorative tiles, top-of-the-line appliances. Somebody’s soon-to-be dream home. This house, located in a serene subdivision in Sterlington, Louisiana, is one of many tightly looped knots in an extensive net cast supporting the lifesaving work of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital®.

The story begins with a vow. More than 70 years ago, a young Lebanese-American entertainer named Danny Thomas was struggling to launch his career. With a baby on the way, his despair led him to St. Jude Thaddeus, the patron saint of hopeless causes. His plea was plain and simple: “Help me find my way in life, and I will build you a shrine.” Soon enough, he began to find work, eventually carving a name for himself in radio, film, and television. In the early 1950s, Danny used his fame to begin conceptualizing a concrete version of his vow. With the help of friends, he embraced the idea of a children’s hospital to open in Memphis, Tennessee, where it would be the first fully integrated hospital in the South. Funding for the completion of the project came to fruition thanks to the formation of the American Lebanese Syrian Associated Charities (ALSAC), a group that adamantly resonated with Danny’s dream that “no child should die in the dawn of life.” On February 4, 1962, St. Jude opened its doors.

Bayou Life St. Jude Dream Home 2026
Twenty-nine years later, Dr. Donald Mack, a pediatric physician from Shreveport, Louisiana, was driven by a similar ethos. Having referred dozens of his patients to St. Jude over the years, he witnessed the astonishing survival rates for childhood cancer improve. Believing that cancer diagnosis was not always hopeless and that the work being done at St. Jude would someday result in a cure, he joined the ALSAC/St. Jude Boards of Directors and Governors. In 1991, he organized a fundraiser where a donated house was raffled, consequently growing what has now become the St. Jude Dream Home® Giveaway, raising about $800 million nationwide so far. Monroe is one of six participating cities in Louisiana with theArkLaMiss community contributing more than $15 million to support St. Jude families.

What results in a stylish home holds the weight of a year-long enterprise replete with strategic planning and carefully interwoven collaboration. In fact, soon after the Certificate of Occupancy is complete around mid-May, the next year’s project is already underway. Brian Allen, builder and general contractor from BRACO Construction, can attest to the rigorous level of involvement. He is already attending meetings for the 2027 Monroe Dream Home. “We’re already discussing where, what, and how. What are we going to do differently? How can we do it better?” he says. Having spent 15 years building this area’s Dream Home, he is especially mindful of the volunteers and subcontractors who donate time, materials, and labor, often at significant personal and professional sacrifice. “This project brings people together for something bigger than any one of us,” Allen adds. “We build the Dream Home so St. Jude can keep doing what matters most-saving children and supporting families when they need it most.”

Bayou Life St. Jude Dream Home 2026
Like Allen, Brian Russell of Russell-Moore Lumber feels fortunate to work on the St. Jude Dream Home, and has been doing so since approximately 2010, this year donating the studs and wall sheathing. Additionally, with the help of sales representative Karen Hart, the company was able to get a plethora of donations: exterior windows from MI Windows and Doors, exterior doors from Boise Cascade/Therma-Tru, interior doors from Louisiana Millwork, exterior and interior door hardware from Jeske, and fiber cement siding and trim from James Hardie. Russell’s involvement is readily informed by the significance of the project. “My son and I were fortunate enough to get to tour the hospital a couple of years ago. Hard to put into perspective the scope of what they accomplish!” Word Electric has also been a longtime participant of the project. George E. Word Jr. and George E. Word III shared their appreciation for the organization saying, “St Jude is one of the best places to help children of all ages. My family and I are honored to have been part of this great cause.”
For the third year, the Monroe Dream Home resides over an acre of land in the DeSiard Trace subdivision, an area hugged between verdant woodland and a field thick with cornstalks, an ecosystem ripe with birdsong. Ashley Sutton, representing her family’s land development company, is grateful that St. Jude has chosen her family’s subdivision once more. “I can’t think of a better cause. We’re just thankful. We hope that this brings health and happiness to more families in the future,” she says. This steadily growing subdivision serves as a canvas for Jan Strickland, the lead designer of this year’s home and nine-year veteran project contributor. Taking into account the home design of other houses in the subdivision, not to mention those she contributed to in the last two years, she opted for an upscale cottage style home, drafted by local residential designer Larry James.
His exterior rendering of the home became her jump-off point to selecting the numerous interior features, all donated by national and regional sponsors such as Brizo, Shaw Industries, Trane, Bosch, and Kichler. Much of the beginning stages of her work is spent thumbing through the new products on the market from national sponsors. She was inspired by a mix of white and gold plumbing and light fixtures, an elegant match to this year’s signature paint color. “Every year, I choose one signature paint color,” says Strickland, who was interested in finding a teal color. While flipping through her paint swatches, a whimsical shade caught her eye. “When I read the color, it stopped me in my tracks.” The Sherwin Williams paint color was named Hazel. “We had lost our baby daughter named Hazel last year,” she reveals, around the same time she was designing last year’s Dream Home. As if touched by an angel, she knew that had to be the signature color.
Shaw Floors also plays a significant role in the colors added to the home, particularly by way of Strickland’s tile selections. Carefully browsing the latest designs and patterns, she imagines the interplay between space, tile, and color. While her selections occur on the Shaw website, she relies on local partner Dupuy Lincoln Flooring & Acoustical to order and install her selections. Sales manager Daniel Dupuy of Lincoln Flooring & Acoustical is especially proud of his team. The craftsmanship of the installers is apparent in the finished look, from the hardwood floors, tile work, custom shower, tub surround, and backsplash. For Dupuy, the company’s involvement is especially meaningful because the Dupuy’s have close family friends who have been directly impacted by the care provided by St. Jude.
“Seeing that impact firsthand makes it even more personal. Knowing that what we do plays even a small role in supporting families like theirs and the many families to come is something we are deeply honored to be a part of,” he says. Likewise, Dakin Hines from Rexel echoes the significance of being in close proximity to the work of St. Jude: “For a lot of us, we have experienced childhood cancer within our families and friends. Personally, I am very grateful to be a part of a company, like Rexel, that supports St. Jude in their quest for a cure. Keep Fighting!” Ultimately, the collaborative effort shines through. Dupuy adds, “It’s always fun working on this project each year with BRACO Construction and Jan Strickland Interiors, and seeing the community support from everyone involved is incredibly encouraging.” The Holton Flooring team, who provided the countertops, concurs, “The St. Jude Dream Home allows us the opportunity to do good, give back, and be a part of something bigger than ourselves. We believe in all the time, work, and resources that go into this project and we’re thankful to be able to participate in any way we can.”
Bayou Life St. Jude Dream Home 2026
Standout features of the home, which has an estimated value of $525,000, include a custom built-in banquette breakfast nook adjacent to the kitchen, a luxurious primary bedroom suite, private study area, and a spacious walk-in pantry. The home is equipped with a Generac Home standby Generator, courtesy of Albritton Service Company, involved now for two years: “We are truly honored and grateful for the opportunity to support such a meaningful cause in our community and country. As a local, family-owned business, supporting families in need matters deeply to us. We are always willing to do our part whenever we can.”

The extensive group of people making up the Monroe Dream Home family lead with their hands, feet, and heart. They understand their contribution is part of a grander cause, and the home staging never fails to include the heart of the matter. The framed faces of local St. Jude patients command the private study area. The ABCs of Cancer artwork adorns a hallway, revealing insights from St. Jude patients about their cancer journey. The boy’s bedroom is in memory of Claude Williams and Corbin Gulde, and the girl’s bedroom is in memory of Harley Sykes, Amber Tamburo, Tiffany Greer, Zoe Simpson, and KK Joyce.

Currently, the St. Jude Dream Home® Giveaway is active in over 40 markets nationwide and continues to grow. The purchase of one ticket ensures families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing, and food. To join any of their fundraising efforts is to embody the belief that children everywhere are ours to protect.

Bayou Life St. Jude Dream Home 2026
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