As you may have heard, the National Housing Conference will celebrate our 90th anniversary at our Annual Housing Visionary Awards Gala on the evening of October 28, 2021, at the Andrew Mellon Auditorium in Washington, DC. During our June meeting, our Board of Governors unanimously approved holding an in-person event. We are hard at work preparing for our best gathering ever.
First and foremost, your safety is our utmost priority. We will require attendees as well as all support personnel to be fully vaccinated. As a result, mask-wearing and social distancing will not be required. Of course, anyone who would feel more comfortable wearing a mask is welcome to do so. This decision was made possible by continued progress in vaccination rates in the District of Columbia and surrounding areas, along with the significant reduction of new cases and hospitalizations in the region. Should conditions change, we will reevaluate our decision consistent with local regulations and guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with your safety as our primary concern.
We can hardly wait until October when we can see everyone together under one roof again. Over the past year, it has been gratifying to witness how well our teams have worked remotely. But there is much we have missed. We have a new appreciation for the “time in the hallway” both at convenings and conferences and in our workplaces.
In my case, since getting vaccinated in April, I have been able to hug my vaccinated daughters, who were limited to socially distanced visits in our backyard; visit my mother, who was strictly isolated for over a year; and have friends and colleagues to our home for dinner. Like many of you, I’m excited to say that I’m going into the office again – and even wearing shoes all day!
At this year’s gala, we will honor the outstanding visionary leadership of our awardees, as well as celebrate NHC’s own milestone of 90 years of defending the American Home.
Collaboration is the key to finding solutions to the nation’s housing challenges. That’s why NHC’s tradition of a lively annual gala has forever been so important to the dedicated members of the housing community. NHC members keep alive the American Dream. They know that dream is one where everyone in our great country can live in a quality, affordable home in a thriving community. And they know that staying connected allows us the opportunity to work together toward this goal.
NHC’s mission is to convene and facilitate collaboration among a diverse continuum of affordable housing stakeholders through dialogue, advocacy, research, and education, and develop equitable solutions that serve our common interests. Since our founding in 1931 by two pioneering women, Mary Kingsbury Simkhovitch and Helen Alfred, we have pursued this work with members from across the country who are committed to collaborating to keep their vision alive.
So, mark your calendars and plan your travel. We look forward to greeting you with open arms (or elbow bumps) as NHC turns 90. We’re ready to continue bringing the housing world together in service to America at our best celebration ever!