Many of our members and friends are familiar with our Annual Gala. But June 11 and 12 were about more than just a celebratory gathering of the housing community.
We started the day Thursday morning with our Board of Governors meeting. We said thank you to John Kelly for his three years of leadership as chair, and welcomed Ted Chandler to his new role. While we are sad to see some of our board members step down, they will be ably replaced by the new slate of board members elected by the membership.
Thursday night’s Gala kicked off with a rousing performance from “The President’s Own” U.S. Marine Corps Band. Gala co-chairs Senator Mel Martinez and Nancy O. Andrews of LIIF shared what this year’s theme, creating community, means to them and their work. Audience members were touched by the moving stories shared by this year’s Housing Visionary Award honorees, Piece by Piece Regional Foreclosure response Initiative led by Atlanta Neighborhood Development Partnership and The Community Properties Initiative led by Ohio Capital Corporation for Housing. Following the program, our guests enjoyed conversation, corn pudding and the sense of satisfaction that comes with knowing that they contributed to the Gala, exceeding NHC’s fundraising goal.
The events of Friday opened early for Young Leaders in Affordable Housing members with a breakfast meeting on the future of the affordable housing field and the role young leaders can play. Kris Siglin of the Housing Partnership Network and Ali Solis of Enterprise Community Partners spoke at the session moderated by YLAH president Eva Wingren.
As Ethan said in our blog last week, the Policy Symposium“showed [the] many ways that housing can be a solution, and it drew together housing stakeholders to learn from each other.” The keynote and research presentation helped us think about the importance of quality affordable housing at every stage of life, and the panels helped us think about the different ways homeownership and supportive rental housing create opportunity for people and communities.
We couldn’t close this reflection in good conscience without expressing the deeply felt gratitude of NHC’s staff and leadership for our sponsors, especially JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo. They and all of our Gala and Policy Symposium sponsors make our work possible all year round.