Mayor Randall L. Woodfin has reappointed Willie Jean Lewis to the Housing Authority of Birmingham District’s Board of Commissioners. Lewis was first appointed to the board in 2016. Her term is through August 13, 2026.
“Ms. Lewis is a true advocate for the residents of Birmingham,” said Mayor Woodfin. “It is an honor to ask her to continue to serve.”
Lewis, a Birmingham native, has dedicated her life to service. She is a 1957 graduate of Parker High School and attended the New York Institute of Technology in Old Westbury, NY. While living in New York, she volunteered with the American Red Cross and the Citizens Participation group in Brooklyn. She also served at the Martin Luther King Center, the Long Beach Literacy Program, and the Tenants Association in Long Beach.
In 1994, tragedy struck, and Lewis lost her daughter to cancer, so she moved back to Birmingham to raise her three grandchildren. Since returning, Lewis has continued her legacy of service. She became the secretary of the Neighborhood Association in Pratt City and was a Girl Scout volunteer at Epic School. In 2006, she was voted president of the Freedom Manor Resident Council where she assisted the senior citizen residents with their needs and planned community activities for them.
Since serving HABD, Lewis received the 2017 President’s Lifetime Achievement Award and the 2017 President’s Volunteer Service Award. She proudly touts her motto, “Do all you can while you can.”
The Housing Authority of the Birmingham District (HABD) is the largest public housing agency within the State of Alabama with approximately 5,100 conventional public housing units located at 14 sites within the Birmingham city limits. HABD serves a population of more than 4,800 families in public housing. Additionally, HABD administers a Section 8 program which consists of more than 5,240 vouchers. HABD is governed by a five-member Board of Commissioners appointed by the mayor of the City of Birmingham.
