The Nudge Report (1/22/2021): A good start…

Last Friday, we were notified that our request for a $75,000 from the Maryland Affordable Housing Trust was approved! We applied for several other grants this past week. One grant request was to fund our anticipated AmeriCorps member that will be working with us beginning in August.

We were also approved for the 2021 Maryland Charity Campaign - this allows state workers to designate a portion of their salary to directly benefit us!

My high for the week has to be the anticipated [RE]energized PP&L Committee and the [RE]invigorated Volunteer Committee. These two committees are looking forward to 2021 and how they can nudge us towards our goal of ending substandard housing in our community.

I spoke with the Regional Director from HUD about the funding opportunities that exist for us at the federal level. I will also be meeting with her and the person in charge of CDBG, ESG & HOME funding* in the state of Maryland. The new Kent County Housing & Transportation Coordinator, Dawson Hunter, will be joining the conversation. I’m excited about the possibility of creating momentum around the idea of critical home modifications for ALL neighbors that need them here in our community.

I thank all of the Board members for investing their time in writing personal thank you notes to all of the people that so generously supported our fall campaign. Part of our strategic plan is to stay engaged with our supporters and volunteers on a regular basis. This is critical to our long-term sustainability. I couldn’t let you all get away with NO links this week, so…

Here’s your LINK of the week > How to Build Meaningful Relationships With Your Donors

Ok, you knew I couldn’t stop at ONE link. I just found out that a friend/mentor-at-a-distance, Steve Burris is entering the next phase of his career. He is the ED of Rebuilding Together Pittsburgh. This was an affiliate that started out as an all-volunteer organization. From their website:

What began as an all-volunteer organization completing a handful of modest housing rehabs is now an organization with an annual budget of over $3 million that supports the work of over 30 staff completing more than 130 physical rehabilitation projects annually for low-income homeowners in Allegheny County.

Next Week!

The annual report will be released next week! The annual affiliate survey will be submitted to the national office. We’ll be sending out the first monthly newsletter of 2021 (with a message from the Executive Director!). We will identify four possible funding sources to nudge about supporting our mission. Continued discussions with the Presbyterian Church and their mission committee about “adopting” a house - stay tuned!

- Wayne

p.s. I’m still looking for that BIG WIN in the first 100 days of 2021!

CDBG, ESG & HOME funding* - CDBG = Community Development Block Grant / ESG = Emergency Solutions Grants / HOME = HOME