Cristen Incitti
They say there is a silver lining to every storm cloud. And for Cristen Incitti, president and CEO of Habitat for Humanity Minnesota, Hurricane Katrina was no exception.
In 2005, Incitti was working in student affairs at Ohio State University when the Category 5 hurricane ripped through New Orleans and the surrounding area, killing almost 1,400 people and causing $186 billion in damages. Partnering with Habitat for Humanity to quickly coordinate a trip to Slidell, Louisiana, Incitti played an instrumental role in the cleanup efforts — and, perhaps more importantly, found her life’s calling in the midst of this calamity.
“I learned a lot about the impact of housing on communities,” she says. Afterward, she moved to Minnesota and began working with families through the Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity homeownership program. “I got to know the process and what folks were experiencing in attempting to secure affordable housing and achieve the American Dream.”
In early 2020, Incitti became CEO of Habitat for Humanity of Minnesota. The organization supports the 24 local Habitat affiliate offices with training, lending and grant programs. Its efforts focus on closing the racial homeownership gap in Minnesota — one of the largest such gaps nationwide — with innovative public policy and advocacy work, affordable mortgage programs, low-cost construction, financing and down payment assistance resources.
So, what led them to Bridgewater Bank? “We were looking for a local banking partner that understood affordable housing and was really in tune with the dynamics of our community,” Incitti says. “Bridgewater’s mission, goals and values were directly aligned with ours.”
Another bonus: Admittance into Bridgewater’s robust women’s network, which provided Incitti with an immediate, built-in community of female leaders. Through its programming, she is able to share crucial information about organizational leadership and help close funding gaps for women leaders. It also affords her insight into closing the poverty gap for Habitat clients. “Homeownership can help break the cycle of generational poverty,” she says.
Incitti’s journey underscores the transformative power of housing. “This work is about more than building homes; it’s about building communities and empowering individuals to achieve lasting stability and success. We must continue working together to create a world where every family has a safe, stable and affordable place to call home,” she says.