Over a dozen years, LIFT – which stands for Let's Invest for Tomorrow – has helped more than 25,000 people in 81 communities buy homes of their own by providing down payment assistance to

In 2020, a storm hit central Virginia that left residents without power for several days. One of Piedmont Housing's properties was without heat, and residents couldn't travel to replenish supplies or charge their phones. So when staff at the Charlottesville nonprofit, together with the community, had a chance to put in protections for residents as part of a redevelopment project, they did. The result will be seen in a new community resource center, part of a larger redevelopment of Friendship Court, recently renamed by residents as Kindlewood.

Community-based organizations (CBOs) that serve neighborhoods uniquely affected by the nation's long history of institutional housing discrimination are at the forefront of efforts to mitigate that history's effects and foster greater equity. However, little is known about how that history has shaped the work done by these groups or the unique challenges they have faced in doing it.

When Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico in 2017, it decimated roads, power and infrastructure. In the small community of Villalba, government workers weren't able to access the people who needed help. But volunteers and staff from Ponce Neighborhood Housing Services were already there.  

"We were the liaison," says Elizabeth Colón Rivera, Ponce's CEO. "We went to the municipality's emergency centers, offering our services and letting them know we had the resources, tools and water to help them."  

NeighborWorks Week, June 3-10, is a chance for NeighborWorks network organizations to connect and celebrate with residents and to highlight the ways they help empower communities for success. First celebrated in 1983, NeighborWorks Week has, for 40 years, been a time to give back to communities. This year, nearly 200 network organizations are taking part.
 

Rebecca Hatfield's first day as president and CEO of Avesta Housing in Maine also happened to be her daughter's first day of kindergarten. Hatfield woke up extra early so she'd have time to wait at the bus stop with her daughter, whose name and teacher were written on a tag hanging over the dress that her daughter had picked out for her first day. 

"She wanted to be perfect, and I wanted to be perfect," Hatfield recalls. 

Rebecca Hatfield's first day as president and CEO of Avesta Housing in Maine also happened to be her daughter's first day of kindergarten. Hatfield woke up extra early so she'd have time to wait at the bus stop with her daughter, whose name and teacher were written on a tag hanging over the dress that her daughter had picked out for her first day. 

"She wanted to be perfect, and I wanted to be perfect," Hatfield recalls.