Farmworker Housing Development Corporation has exciting news to share with you! We are proud to announce that Roberto Jimenez, FHDC’s Executive Director recently graduated from NeighborWorks® Achieving Excellence in Community Development program in collaboration with Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. The 18th month program began in the fall of 2010. Roberto was one of 50 leaders selected nationally to participate. The performance-driven executive development program is targeted at seasoned community development leaders and their organizations.

During the period of the program, Roberto lead FHDC through one its most successful housing expansion phases. FHDC had three development deals funded, two of which are acquisition/rehab and are near completion. The other is a new construction project that will add 40 units to the Nuevo Amanecer community in Woodburn, Oregon. FHDC’s housing portfolio will increase by more than 30% because of this expansion.

Roberto’s accomplishments were recently recognized at Portland Community College’s 50 Anniversary celebration on March of 2012. Roberto was named one of PCC’s 50 Diamond Alumni Award Winners in honor of the college’s 50th Anniversary.

Congratulations Roberto!

Wells Fargo has been recognized by two organizations that examine aspects of a company’s commitment to social responsibility issues.

DiversityInc ranked Wells Fargo No. 33 on its 2012 list of Top 50 Companies for Diversity, up seven spots from last year. Wells Fargo also was named the top company for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender employees and will receive DiversityInc’s Top Company for Community Development Special Award during an event in October in New York City.

Corporate Responsibility magazine named Wells Fargo among the 100 Best Corporate Citizens. For the past 13 years, the magazine has rated companies based on factors including diversity, corporate governance, philanthropy and environmental sustainability.

12 Consecutive Years

The honors from DiversityInc mark the 12th year in a row that Wells Fargo has placed among the Top 50. In 2011, Wells Fargo ranked No. 40.

Each year DiversityInc surveys companies and looks at factors such as CEO commitment, human capital, corporate and organizational communication, and supplier diversity. For 2012, 587 companies were considered for inclusion in DiversityInc’s lists, up 11 percent from 2011.

“It’s great to be recognized for our efforts,” said Wells Fargo Oregon Region President Don Pearson of Portland. “Diversity and corporate responsibility are part of our core values at Wells Fargo. We realize we will not succeed as a company if we don’t embrace diversity and do all we can to help our communities and customers succeed.”

“Few companies have faced the marketplace challenge as well as Wells Fargo,” said Luke Visconti, CEO of DiversityInc. “At a time when bank values have been under scrutiny, this company has demonstrated a deep commitment to creating economic vitality in underserved communities. Under the leadership of Chairman, President and CEO John Stumpf, a true diversity visionary, the company is increasing its external and internal diversity focus even more.”

Serving Oregonians since 1852, Wells Fargo is celebrating its 160th anniversary this year. The company provides banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance through more than 9,000 stores; 12,000 ATMs; the Internet (wellsfargo.com); and other distribution channels across North America and internationally.

from City of Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability, “City of Portland recognizes seven local business leaders at the 20th annual BEST Awards: Award winners build on two decades of groundbreaking sustainable business innovations,” April 25

Portland’s top awards for business sustainability were revealed today at the Businesses for an Environmentally Sustainable Tomorrow (BEST) Awards presented by Sustainability at Work, a program of the City of Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability. The event marked the 20th anniversary of the BEST Awards, which recognize businesses demonstrating a commitment to excellence in sustainable business practices.

Portland Mayor Sam Adams presented the awards at the ceremony held on Wednesday, April 25 at the The Nines Hotel. Introduced by Bureau of Planning and Sustainability Director Susan Anderson, the keynote addresses featured reflections from three local leaders about the past, present and future of Portland’s sustainable business efforts: Nik Blosser of Celilo Group Media, Aneshka Colas-Dickson of Colas Construction and Renee Spears of Rose City Mortgage.

“In producing the Portland Plan, which was adopted by City Council just today, we learned something important: that prosperity, education, health and equity are all interconnected. The businesses honored tonight are a model for how sustainable innovation can improve our city in each of these areas. These businesses are one of the reasons Portland is among the most sustainable cities in the world,” said Portland Mayor Sam Adams. “It has been 20 years since the city began recognizing the very best of our sustainable businesses, and it’s inspiring to see how far we’ve come in creating an environment where companies that embrace social and environmental sustainability can truly thrive and prosper.”

The winners of the 20th annual BEST Awards are listed by category, along with a link to a video highlighting their sustainable practices, below:

BEST Practices for Sustainability – Large companies

Purdy, the Portland paintbrush and roller manufacturer, is dedicated to being a zero-waste-to-landfill facility under the enthusiastic leadership of their “Green Machine” team and offers free English as a Second Language (ESL) training for their employees. Video: http://youtu.be/-ekyI0TBeD0

BEST Practices for Sustainability – Medium companies

Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance sited their new office close to the bus mall and offers transit benefits to encourage alternative transportation. Employees also use a carbon tracking platform for travel, commuting and various office practices to help measure and reduce their carbon footprint.
Video: http://youtu.be/O-7zDP7ozIo

BEST Practices for Sustainability – Small companies

Capital Pacific Bank provides financial services to underserved local businesses and nonprofits, and boasts an impassioned green team that got the entire company excited about sustainability, both in their own operations, and in the businesses they choose to work with. Video: http://youtu.be/19UGPRz_DfQ

BEST Practices for Sustainability – Very small companies

FMYI [for my innovation] has a triple-bottom-line business model, helps their clients become more sustainable, and goes above and beyond to support employees and the community. FMYI minimizes travel emissions by offering 100% subsidized Trimet passes and Zipcar memberships, and by meeting with clients in a virtual space — which has reduced corporate travel by over 40%.
Video: http://youtu.be/Bn7tJZCQJ5g

Sustainable Food Systems

NatureBake (Oregon Grains bread) partners with local farmers and food producers to create bread made almost entirely from ingredients sourced within 100 miles. Almost no waste is generated in production, with dedicated staff to facilitate food donation and a contract with an animal feed company to divert food scraps from the landfill.
Video: http://youtu.be/DFv1u5DkHhs

Sustainable Products or Services (Two winners)

GO Box solves the problem of disposable food cart and take-out containers by providing bike-delivered reusable containers for food cart vendors and customers.
Video: http://youtu.be/p2nWb7iZugE

Sustainable Northwest Wood partners with local growers and mills, providing the building community with a steady supply of local, sustainable wood.
Video: http://youtu.be/fUQWSvAd2Xw

For more information about the awards program and the winners: www.sustainabilityatworkpdx.com/recognition/best-awards/

We would like to congratulate and recognize NAYA Family Center youth, Alexis Phillips (Navajo), for being named Franklin High School’s 2012 Rose Festival princess!

Alexis is an outstanding young leader in our community. She first came to NAYA as a participant in our ninth grade counts summer programming. Alexis spends hours volunteering at NAYA Culture Nights, participates in our youth IDA program, and is preparing for college through services and programs provided by our College and Career Center.

Alexis, a junior at Franklin High School, is an Honor Roll student, the president of the Black Student Union, a member of the Step Team, a Mock Trail team member, a National Society member and a Life Time Achievement Honoree. Alexis is a driven and determined young woman. She plans to attend college to pursue a career in law.

We are so proud of Alexis and all that she has accomplished!

To read the Oregonian article on Alexis Phillips, click here.

A huge congratulations to Betty Tamm from all of us at Oregon ON!

National NeighborWorks® Association Presents Excellence Awards to Three Outstanding Practitioners, March 27, 2012

Arlington, VA – The National NeighborWorks® Association (NNA) presented three awards to outstanding individuals in the NeighborWorks® Network who have demonstrated innovative talent and dedicated commitment to the housing and community development industry. Prizes were awarded March 22, 2012 at the Annual NeighborWorks® Executive Directors Symposium in Arlington, VA in the following three categories:

1. Lifetime Achievement – Alfred Gold, Executive Director, Community Resources and Housing Development Corporation, Westminster, CO.
2. Practitioner of the Year – Betty Tamm, Executive Director, NeighborWorks Umpqua, Roseburg, OR.
3. Emerging Leader – Jesse Ergott, Executive Director, NHS of Lackawanna County, Scranton, PA.

Three, non-NeighborWorks®, industry-related executives and last year’s winners judged the 2012 candidates.  All judges commented on the quality of submissions received and noted how difficult it was to select just one winner.

Lou Tisler, Executive Director of Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Cleveland and Board President of NNA, presented the awards to the three winners:

Practitioner of the Year:  Betty Tamm, Executive Director, NeighborWorks Umpqua, Roseburg, OR.

Under Tamm’s leadership, NeighborWorks Umpqua has in the last nine years expanded from a staff of 12, to a current staff of 56 and an operational budget increase from less than a million dollars per year to over $5 million.

In those years Tamm has helped launched Heartwood Resources, a social enterprise creating jobs for the difficult to employ to run a deconstruction crew that provides inventory for the Umpqua’s retail store of reclaimed building materials. Umpqua operates two Regional Housing Centers offering a full array of pre-post purchase and rehab services for single family homeowners. Umpqua has a micro-enterprise department that has launched a ‘think local-buy local’ initiative and provides valuable business planning services to its communities.  Umpqua Community Property Management was launched in 2007 to self-manage the 400+ units of multi-family housing that it has developed/rehabbed and owned, resulting in happier tenants, reduced maintenance costs and operating in the black instead of the red. Umpqua’s Dream$avers/IDA program (with a huge $975,000 investment from the Ford Foundation) now operates in 12 rural counties in Oregon and receives on average one third of the state’s tax credits each year, resulting in millions and millions of dollars invested in building personal assets for individuals for education, homeownership or small business.

Due to Umpqua’s diversity of business lines they were able to absorb the assets of a CDC in the Medford-Ashland area that was shutting its doors.  Umpqua took over four land trusts by this acquisition and will maintain the goals and commitments of their activities.  These land trusts were developed so that residents could afford to own homes in the high-cost community of Ashland.  There were 30 “Self-Help” homeowners who built homes on the land trusts and will continue to benefit from the affordability of these sites.

Recently, Umpqua received notable awards, including another “excellence award” for “Innovative Partnerships” from the State of Oregon Housing and Community Services Department and the Housing Assistance Council’s Rural Sustainable Housing Development Award.

Yadira Juarez started volunteering with Farmworker Housing Development Corporation in 2005 when they opened their housing community in Salem, Oregon, Colonia Libertad. She was instrumental in developing FHDC’s educational programs at Libertad which have served nearly 500 children since 2005.

In 2006 Yadira was hired as an instructor for FHDC’s Family Literacy Program where she taught pre-kinder children to read and write. In 2007 she accepted the positions of Head Start Instructional Assistant at Washington Elementary School. She remains at Washington Elementary and works part-time in FHDC’s Summer Enrichment Program. In November of 2012 Yadira was awarded the Crystal Apple Award by the Salem-Keizer Education Foundation. These awards are awarded annually to the top educators in the Salem-Keizer area.

Of her love for teaching Yadira said, “I knew very early in my life that I enjoyed working with children. I am drawn to their eagerness to learn, their trusting nature and their inquisitive minds.”

Congratulations Yadira!

Photos by Jaycob Desrosiers

Bienestar is proud to announce receipt of the 2011 Neighborhood Builders award from Bank of America.  The award presented to Bienestar by Bank of America market president Roger Hinshaw, recognizes the organization’s work in transforming neighborhoods, providing affordable housing and extensive resident service programs for the 462 families it serves.  The award includes a grant of $200,000 over two years.  Bienestar’s Executive Director Karen Shawcross accepted the award at a gala reception hosted by Bank of America at the Portland Art Museum.

>Bank of America’s Roger Hinshaw presenting Bienestar award

In making the announcement to Bienestar, Bank of America’s Monique Barton said that the review committee, comprised of community members and Bank of America associates, was particularly impressed with the Listos Para Vida/Ready for Life initiative offered to children who live in Bienestar properties.  These programs include five Homework Clubs, Science Clubs, Financial Fitness for Life, Education Navigation, Born to Learn, Summer Lunch & Fun, Explorador Camp, Born to Learn, Soccer & Basketball Clubs, Yoga, Dancing, Kids’ Computer Clubs, PlayWrite for teens, Teen’s Build Your Own Computer club, Bien $tar $avers, Kids’ cooking & nutrition, holiday parties, and special events like Audubon presentations, Zoo to You and more.

“We are committed to making an intervention in the lives of these second generation immigrant children,” says Bienestar’s Executive Director Karen Shawcross, “so that they stay in school, go on to postsecondary training, and have brighter futures.  When we ask our adult residents their dreams for their families, we hear over and over again that their hope is that their children get good educations and better jobs than they have.  Our mission is to build housing, hope and futures for the well-being of working families and seniors, and that starts for us with the babies in our Born to Learn program and continues through programs for school-age children, teens and adults. This generous grant from Bank of America will make a tremendous impact to our capacity to run and to expand these programs.”

<Bienestar’s Executive Director thanks Bank of America for award and grant

Bank of America’s Neighborhood Builder award has helped nearly 600 nonprofits across the country continue to address local challenges and grow their programs, enabling them to improve the quality of life for even more individuals.  For their outstanding work on behalf of many, and to bolster their reach, Neighborhood Builders receive $200,000 in unrestricted funding over two years and leadership training development for emerging executives.  “We are thrilled to have this generous investment in Bienestar,” says Board president John McMeekan, “particularly with such a small staff and 32 different resident service programs for the 462 families we serve, we struggle with resources to provide the holistic support to working poor families that is our mission.  We are very grateful for this award and anticipate an enormous impact to the organization.”

Bienestar staff and board members at Bank of America award event

Bienestar is a nonprofit community development corporation based in Hillsboro providing affordable housing and resident services for farmworkers and low-income working families in Washington and Columbia counties.  For 30 years, Bienestar (formerly Housing Development Corporation) has been working to unleash the potential of people to improve the quality of life for themselves, their children, their families and the community. Visit www.bienestar-or.org for more information.

More information about Bank of America’s Neighborhood Excellence Initiative is available at www.bankofamerica.com/foundation.