It used to be that a single income could support a family – including owning a home. After 35 years of employment you could retire from the same company you’d been at all that time, with a pension.

Times sure have changed. Now most of us need a savvy work and personal strategy just to navigate our way into the middle class.

Peter Ricchiuti’s guests on Out to Lunch today are all about helping you find ways to achieve the American dream – and hold onto it.

Cullan Maumas and the New Orleans Redevelopment Fund redevelop New Orleans neighborhoods.

Jamie Wine and Energy Wise deliver regular folks cheaper energy options that are normally only available to people with greater resources.

Sometimes business is about more than making money. It’s about making a difference. Cullan Maumas and Jamie Wine are New Orleans entrepreneurs who are equal part “New Orleans” and “entrepreneur.”

Photos at Commander’s Palace by Alison Moon.