The Polk County Housing Trust Fund today announced a $75,000 grant from the Wells Fargo Foundation.
The grant will be used for the Polk County Housing Trust Fund’s Stable Steady Strong initiative, which makes grants to local nonprofits that help people and families find safe, affordable housing. This year, 15 local not-for-profit organizations are providing services partially funded by Stable Steady Strong.
“Wells Fargo’s commitment to supporting housing stability for all our neighbors is commendable and its leadership is vitally important to galvanizing the region’s action to ensure every person and family has stable housing,” said Toby O’Berry, executive director of the Polk County Housing Trust Fund. “We are grateful for their support and partnership in helping people and families reach their goals and thrive,” he said.
For the year ending June 30, nonprofit programs funded through Stable Steady Strong helped 1,787 local households, including 500 who were homeless prior to entering the program. According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, Polk County currently needs an additional 11,635 rental housing units that are both affordable and available to extremely low-income renter households.
“Everyone should have a quality, affordable place to call home,” said Laura Howe, Iowa branch banking region executive, Wells Fargo. “As The Bank of Doing, Wells Fargo is working to increase access to housing in central Iowa for individuals historically shut out of the market.”
For more information, including how to support Stable Steady Strong visit pchtf.org/stablesteadystrong.
The Polk County Housing Trust Fund today announced that it raised $710,815 for its Stable Steady Strong investment campaign, a new high for this annual fundraising effort that ends each June. The money raised funds services to help people find and keep stable housing in Polk County.
“We are inspired yet again about the community’s continued support of Stable Steady Strong which lets us work with a network of community organizations to help meet the need for stable housing. Contributions to this program provide needed flexibility to invest where the need is greatest and help fill gaps in local services,” said Toby O’Berry, the Polk County Housing Trust Fund’s executive director.
The Stable Steady Strong campaign is funded by individuals, businesses, and foundations. Principal® Foundation has been a leader in the campaign, with a $250,000 investment.
“We are proud to support the Polk County Housing Trust Fund and its mission to provide safe, stable, and affordable housing to those in need,” said Jo Christine Miles, director of Principal Foundation and Community Relations. “This investment will continue to give residents of Polk County the resources to access essential needs, such as affordable, stable housing. By helping to remove barriers, Polk County Housing Trust Fund is empowering people and the community so they can build better financial futures.”
Funds from Stable Steady Strong are granted to local nonprofits providing programs and supportive services that focus on housing stability, affordability, justice, and accessibility. Thanks to the support of the Polk County Housing Trust Fund’s operating expenses by the Polk County Board of Supervisors, 100% of funds raised through this program can be granted into the community.
This year’s grant recipients provide a variety of programs and services such as:
• Rental housing navigation – building relationships with landlords to support program participants, connecting landlords and prospective tenants, dispute resolution, or assistance with the process of searching and applying for housing,
• Homeownership preparedness - counseling and education to prepare homebuyers financially and help them navigate the buying process as well as take advantage of available financial assistance programs,
• Supportive housing or case management - wraparound services such as case management for people at risk of homelessness, including services to help with challenges like mental or physical disability, addiction, or other health concerns, and
• Culturally-appropriate housing services - including culturally-aware case management and services like translation.
Thanks to the success of this year’s campaign, PCHTF was able to award $689,528 in grants to organizations last month. Learn more about them here: https://www.pchtf.org/cms/funding/pss-funding
“We have been so uplifted by the community’s continued support since the pandemic, but the work of ensuring equitable housing access for all who need it in Polk County is far from finished. As we celebrate last year’s success, we look forward to beginning anew gathering the funds needed to continue to support people and families,” O’Berry said.
Learn how you can become an investor in this effort at https://pchtf.org/stablesteadystrong.
Updated: Jun 8, 2023
The Polk County Housing Trust Fund (PCHTF) recently awarded $689,528 in grants to 18 programs at local non-profit organizations through the organization’s Programs and Supportive Services (PSS) program. These grants bridge the gap between affordable housing and families in our community through programs that support housing stability, affordability, justice, and access.
“PCHTF is committed to providing housing stability for all members of our community. We partner with a network of organizations to provide resources and support where they are needed most, and again this year, the community helped us raise the total we could award to its highest level yet for the PSS program,” said Ena Babic Barnes, PCHTF board member and chair of the committee responsible for allocating funds.
The PSS funds PCHTF allocates are unique because they come from community businesses, organizations, and individuals through the PCHTF’s Stable Steady Strong fundraising effort. This supplements PCHTF’s operational funding and “bricks-and-mortar” development grant funds, which are provided by Polk County and the State Housing Trust Fund administered by the Iowa Finance Authority.
Thanks to the operating support PCHTF receives from Polk County, PCHTF grants 100% of funds invested through Stable Steady Strong out to local nonprofit partners who provide programs and services that meet critical needs in the community.
“We are grateful for the community’s help securing the needed funds for this work, which allows us to increase our investments where they will be most impactful—supporting equitable housing opportunity. While we have achieved so much, the need continues, and we will keep working with our supporters and the community so that everybody in Polk County has safe, stable, and affordable housing,” said Mollie Giller, PCHTF’s director of programs and supportive services.
To learn more about Stable Steady Strong and the investments it supports in our community — or to make a contribution in support of this program, visit our website https://www.pchtf.org/stablesteadystrong/ .