'I Always Knew I Would Come Back' to Pittsburgh

Moira Egler, 25, wanted to live in New Orleans ever since she volunteered on post-Katrina reconstruction projects as a high-schooler back in 2006. Gutting houses and talking with survivors inspired her to pursue community development as a potential career. She ended up going to Tulane University and toiling at hands-on internships in New Orleans communities. To save up some extra money, she decided to get a summer waitressing job in her hometown, Pittsburgh, then head back to New Orleans as an AmeriCorps volunteer.

Or at least, that was the plan. Once she got back home, she couldn't help but notice both the exciting changes happening in Pittsburgh's East End, and the work that still needed to be done in the city's low-income neighborhoods. She realized Pittsburgh could use a native like her, and that she could apply the skills she learned in New Orleans right in her backyard. She got a job working with a city councilman, where she helped draft legislation on vacant and blighted properties.