Regina Carter Wins the 2026 David Prize

Regina Carter, founder of Repurposed Life and President of the Morris Houses Resident Association, was recently announced as one of the five winners of The David Prize, which recognizes New Yorkers with bold ideas for strengthening the city. Each winner receives $200,000 in unrestricted funding over two years. 

After years of building Repurposed Life, winning the 2026 David Prize offers recognition and validation for the work she’s been doing. Through Repurposed Life, Ms. Carter collects usable furniture, housewares, clothing, and electronics and connects them with NYCHA residents who need them through pop-up distribution events. 

“I’m used to doing this through sheer willpower, so the outside validation that comes with this is really great,” Ms. Carter said. “I was chosen out of over 3,000 applicants to be a finalist and then I was chosen as a winner out of 15 people. It feels good that people know about the work I do, and they agree that it’s important, valuable, and needed across New York City.” 

To date, more than half a million pounds of usable furniture and household items have been redirected from landfills through her initiative. 

“Every time I do these events, and when they’re really big – for instance the biggest one, we had over 2,000 pieces of furniture – I thought, ‘Oh no, what am I going to do if everything isn’t taken? We don’t have storage.’ But the need is so large that everything was taken.” 

Ms. Carter balances Repurposed Life with her full-time job at the NYC Human Resources Administration, where she works as an information services agent, and with serving as the RA president of her development. She carries out her Repurposed Life work on evenings and weekends, fueled by coffee.  

She credits NYCHA residents and community partners with helping to make the work possible. For example, Morris Houses Resident Association Vice President Lisa Rose helped establish a community closet in the RA office, which provides residents access to donated clothing and other necessities. Ms. Rose also keeps a running list of residents who come to the office requesting items. 

One of Ms. Carter’s goals for Repurposed Life is to have a space for storage. 

“Because we don’t have storage, we can’t have inventory,” Ms. Carter said. “I’d love to have a space where we can process donations, and we’d have inventory to address emergencies, such as domestic violence situations, house fires, leaks, bed bugs, and more. I also have a lot of people who send me wish lists, and sometimes people call me looking for specific items.” 

Ms. Carter is the third NYCHA community member to be awarded The David Prize: Red Hook Houses Resident Association President Karen Blondel received the award in 2023 and former NYCHA resident Domingo Morales received the award in 2020 for his work with the organization he founded, Compost Power. 

Ms. Carter’s message to other NYCHA residents with an idea that could make a difference is to go for it: “Anyone and everyone should go for this prize if they have something that will change New York City.” 

Featured photo credit: Regina Carter (right) with Lisa Rose (left) in the Morris Houses RA Office. Photo by Adi Talwar/City Limits.