All Blog Posts (184)

I don’t know what we’re gonna sow, I don’t know what it’s gonna yield, sometimes I’m not sure if I know you yet, but my plow is already in your field…

What a nice way to start a song and video about a community garden! Julia King, Neighborhood Outreach Coordinator at LaCasa Inc. in Goshen, IN shared this video with me and I LOVED IT.…

This is an edited version of last week’s post because I love the title :-)

Last week was the NeighborWorks Training Institute in New Orleans, and our National Community Building and Organizing…

Last week I mentioned Eboni’s wonderful story of hard work, perseverance and commitment to a goal of not only going to college, but of being the first one in her family to attend a four year program. And if that were not enough, she decided she wanted to go to an Ivy League school! Stories like hers are inspirational and I have no doubt she was the driver…

In photo: Eboni Boykin

Beyond Housing, located in St. Louis, MO has an Individual Development Account (IDA) program called Viking Advantage that matches savings for post-secondary education. The program works as follows: every dollar a participant deposits in their…

This week I was reading a concept paper written by Priscila Cisneros, from Cabrillo Economic Development Corporation. She had some great definitions for Community Building and Community Organizing that I want to share. …

Position: Director of Homeownership

Company: …

Nomination process for the Dorothy Richardson Resident Leadership Award has been opened for about a month and the deadline to submit applications is April 13th.

So, who can be nominated for this award? Any …

Montgomery Housing Partnership located in Silver Spring, MD organized a Teen Magazine program that reported great success. The goal of the Pembridge Square Teen Summer Camp was to increase participants’ self-confidence,…

This week I am featuring Steven Curtis, Community Organizer at Community Housing of Wyandotte County (CHWC), located in Kansas City, KS and his blog about St. Peter's, his neighborhood, in the urban core of the city. CHWC is one of 104 NeighborWorks Network Organizations part of the National Community Building and Organizing Program. Below is Steven’s blog:

Like most urban neighborhoods that have…

Last weekend my daughter played the role of “Eponine” in her school musical of Les Misérables. This wonderful show is based on the novel written by Victor Hugo; so I decided to read the novel since we’ve had so much “Les Miz” buzz happening around the house lately.

When I opened the book the preface…

The Dorothy Richardson Awards for Resident Leadership honor the spirit and example of Dorothy Richardson, a Pittsburgh, PA resident who refused to allow her neighborhood to succumb to the…

The Scotts Miracle-Gro company has announced the availability of grants up to $1,500 to nonprofits building community gardens. Apply by February 24.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced the acceptance of applications under the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) for Fiscal Year 2012 for financial assistance as follows: grants, guaranteed loans, and combined grants and guaranteed loans for the development and construction of renewable energy systems and for energy efficiency improvement projects; grants for conducting energy audits; grants for conducting renewable energy development assistance; and grants for…

Position: Senior Staff Analyst


Company:
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Continuing in the vein of highlighting resident leadership, today I am going to focus on a great story provided by Neighborhood Housing Services of New Haven in Connecticut. It shows how concerned residents, who show they care about their neighborhood and get involved, can have a big impact in transforming communities to make them more amicable and welcoming to all. The story is also a testament to the usefulness of face to face surveys and the additional benefits they bring. Even after all…

Consolidated Credit Counseling Services, Inc., founded in 1993, is a non for profit industry leader in providing financial counseling throughout the United States. We also offer housing counseling as part of our service.

Our overall mission is to help families end financial crisis and solve money management problems through various types of education and professional counseling.

Through educational programs, individual financial counseling, money management…

Position: AmeriCorps VISTA Neighborhood Project Coordinator

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Position: AmeriCorps VISTA Educational Programs Specialist

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HANDS (Housing and Neighborhood Development Services) located in Orange, NJ has one of the most interesting highlights in their quarterly reports.

The organization just celebrated their 25th anniversary and hosted a series of walking tours, bus tour, a volunteer day, a symposium and an art show. They engage with youth in what they call their ORNG Ink program, and have engaged over 150 young people in their youth art…

Resident Leadership Development is one of three core pillars of the National Community Building and Organizing Program at NeighborWorks America; (the other two are 1. support of resident driven groups and 2. ongoing community building activities). So, I will start focusing my blogs on these three focus areas when possible.

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