Housing Opportunity Foundation awards $76,607 to area nonprofits

Wednesday, September 6, 2017 5:56:12 PM

9/06/2017

Contact: Kim Walker

Contact Phone: 704-940-3149

Pictured left to right: Shantiqua Neely, Executive Director, A Child’s Place; Sandi Buchanan, 2017 President, A Child’s Place Board of Directors; Joan Goode,  2017 Strides for Shelter 5K Run/Walk, Chair; Roger Parham, 2017 Association/CarolinaMLS President

Charlotte, N.C. – True to its mission of striving to affect a better quality of life across the region, the Housing Opportunity Foundation awarded 17 area local nonprofits and seven area Habitat for Humanity agencies totaling $76,607.66 through the annual Realtor®-directed Habitat Support and Community Grants Programs.  This includes a $15,107.66 donation to A Child’s Place, raised during the foundation’s second annual Strides for Shelter 5K & Fun run.  The foundation serves as the charitable arm of the Charlotte Regional Realtor® Association and is dedicated to making a difference in the community by creating housing opportunities, promoting homeownership, and positioning and educating Realtors® as leaders.

The Community Grants Program supports area organizations that address unmet housing needs in Mecklenburg and Iredell counties, while the Habitat Support Program is a way to assist area Habitats that are meeting crucial housing needs for low-to-moderate income families. Since the inception of the Habitat Support Program 11 years ago and the Community Grants Program nine years ago, Realtor® members have distributed a total of $383,107.66 to area organizations.

“The beauty of the community grants program is that we are funding a number of projects that our members volunteer with already.  Many of these organizations have simple needs from the purchase of a new beds for children, to providing resources to care for homeless families, to bus fare for residents of a local domestic violence shelter – these two grant programs are just one of the many ways we can assist those nonprofits that are working to address unmet housing needs in Mecklenburg and Iredell Counties,” said Association/CarolinaMLS President Roger Parham.

Launched in 2009, the Community and Habitat Grants Program awards funds annually to area nonprofits.  Applications are rated according to community impact, project feasibility, fiscal strength and Realtor® support.  Ten panel members were appointed to take part in the 2017 panel process, including members of the Diversity Council, Executive Committee, Leadership Academy, Fair and Affordable Housing Advisory Group, Housing Opportunity Foundation Committee, and association staff.

Funds are restricted and must be used by December 31, 2017.  Funds cannot be used for capital costs, staff/administrative expenses or debt reduction.

The following organizations were awarded Community Grants:

  1. Beds for Kids:  $2,500 to purchase 208 lamps for their homeless clients including families and children. Realtor® Referrals: Cullen McNulty, McNulty Realty and Ben Bowen, Ben Bowen Properties

  2. Carolina Comfort Coalition / Serenity House: $530 to purchase two therapeutic contour mattresses to improve the comfort and healthcare of their patients during their end of life care. Realtor® Referral: Laura Marx, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices

  3. Changed Choices:  $2,500 to provide rental assistance to women who are newly released from jail to aid in their transition back into society. Realtor® Referral: Jane Kusterer, Allen Tate Company

  4. Community Culinary School of Charlotte:  $3,000 to provide a portion of the cost of training one homeless participant in a 14-week culinary arts program, including life skills and job placement training. Realtor® Referral: Missie Banks, Allen Tate Company

  5. Charlotte Crown Realtist Association:  $2,700 to provide funding for a ‘Get On The Bus’ tour where consumers visit perspective homes as well as attend a home-buying seminar.  Realtor® Referral: Antonio Worsham, Equity North Carolina Real Estate

  6. Charlotte Family Housing:  $3,000 to provide resources to care for 12 homeless families each for a period of one month, as they work towards stabilization. Realtor® Referral: Dan Cottingham, Cottingham Chalk Hayes Realtors®

  7. Charlotte Housing Authority Scholarship Fund:  $3,000 to provide support for a mentoring program with a goal of encouraging first-generation students living in public/subsidized housing to graduate to break the cycle of poverty.  Realtor® Referral: Roger Parham, Allen Tate Company

  8. Charlotte Rescue Mission:  $2,200 to provide for heat reflecting tint at the Dove’s Nest women’s facility which will aid in cooling the building and reducing energy costs.  Realtor® Referrals: Kim Overman, Allen Tate Company

  9. Crisis Assistance Ministry:  $2,500 to purchase unassembled bedframes with storage kits from IKEA to meet the needs of 10-12 homeless neighbors. Realtor® Referral: Joe Naccarato, Allen Tate Company

  10. Gracious Hands Transitional Housing:  $3,000 to provide assistance for the families transitioning out of the homes program (mostly women and children). Realtor® Referral: Joan Inglis, CD Realty

  11. Men’s Shelter of Charlotte:  $2,970 to provide bus passes for guests in the shelter to have transportation to jobs and job interviews. Realtor® referral: Penny Teeter, Shearer Realty

  12. My Sister’s House (Friendship CDC):  $3,000 to provide for 10 residents in the form of deposits and application fees for the residents seeking permanent, safe, affordable housing. Realtor® Referral: Anthony Lindsey, GlobeCrossing, LCC

  13. QC Family Tree: $2,700 to support the renovation of one apartment unit in Enderly Park to house a low-income resident at an affordable rent. Realtor® referral: David Kennedy, TR Lawing Realty, Inc.

  14. Safe Alliance:  $2,500 to provide 1,818 single-ride bus fares for residents of the domestic violence shelter to aid in their transition to safe, affordable housing. Realtor® referral: Lynn Johnson, Savvy & Co. Real Estate

  15. The Relatives:  $3,000 to purchase mattresses and bedframes for homeless youth, who are seeking to obtain housing through The Relatives’ housing program. Realtor® referral: Carolyn Taylor, Premier Sotheby’s International Realty

  16. The T.R.E. Foundation:  $2,400 to provide resources to prepare and distribute lunches for 200 homeless individuals in Charlotte for 12 months. Realtor® referral: Renata Henderson Murray, Wilkinson ERA Real Estate

 

The following area-Habitat for Humanity agencies were awarded grants:

  1. Habitat for Humanity of Cabarrus County: $2,500 to assist with paint and flooring for the upcoming CommUNITY build.

  2. Habitat for Humanity of Charlotte: $3,000 to support the cost of critical repairs for one family home at 1425 Echo Glen Road.

  3. Habitat for Humanity of Gaston County (Gastonia, NC): $3,000 to purchase the siding for a Habitat home on Tanner Street.

  4. Habitat for Humanity of Lincoln County (Denver, NC): $3,000 for two exterior doors, nine interior doors, and 12 windows for a new construction build.

  5. Habitat for Humanity of Stanly County: $3,000 for materials (sheetrock, molding, baseboards and supplies) for a specific home build.

  6. Our Towns Habitat for Humanity (Davidson, NC): $3,000 to assist with the costs of a new roof to be occupied by a mother and her sons.

  7. Union-Anson County Habitat for Humanity (Monroe, NC): $2,500 to support purchasing windows and exterior doors for a Habitat house on Bethel Lane.

The organizations were formally recognized by the Housing Opportunity Foundation, association and community leadership, and supporting donors at the annual Opening Hearts, Opening Doors luncheon held on September 6, 2017 to celebrate and shine a light on the work area organizations are doing within the region.

For more information about the Housing Opportunity Foundation, the association or CarolinaMLS, visit www.CarolinaHome.com.

The Charlotte Regional Realtor® Association is a trade association that provides its more than 9,800 Realtor® members with the resources and services they need to conduct ethical, professional, successful and profitable businesses. The association is dedicated to being the region's primary resource for residential real estate information. The association operates the Carolina Multiple Listing Services, Inc. (CarolinaMLS), which has approximately 11,400 Subscribers and is the private cooperative Realtors® use for access to tens of thousands of residential listings in a multicounty service area, including the high-growth Charlotte area and counties outside this service area.

The Housing Opportunity Foundation is the charitable arm of the Charlotte Regional Realtor® Association and is dedicated to funding, education, advocacy and leadership programs that are focused on fair and affordable housing and workforce-housing initiatives. The foundation serves to position and educate Realtors® as leaders, promote homeownership and provide funding to create housing opportunities.

Original Publish Date: 9/6/2017