APPLETON, Wis.– Community First Credit Union said it has leveraged a business partnership to boost a long-standing community partner.
The Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago announced recently a $10,000 Community First Award targeted toward affordable housing has been given to Appleton-based nonprofit Pillars that helps the homeless. Pillars was nominated for the award by Community First Credit Union, which has been a strong community partner for many years and an FHLB member financial.
“Pillars identified the need within our community of affordable housing and they really took it upon themselves to bring about a solution,” said CFCU’s Chief Lending Officer Tim Hoff, a member of the Pillars’ volunteer board of directors. “And, by creating opportunities to have multiple individuals living together with some shared space was really innovative and has done great things for our community.”
Pillars’ Single Room Occupancy (SRO) program involves rehabilitating blighted single-family homes to be made available to formerly homeless individuals progressing on a path toward self-sufficiency. The agency opened its first SRO in 2018 and three more have opened since, thanks in part to Community First’s reduced-interest line of credit that helped make the rehabilitation work affordable.
“Pillars exists because the community cares about the people who live here and wanting to do something to make this community a better place,” said Joe Mauthe, Pillars’ executive director. He called the aptly named Community First Award a great honor that will lift families and individuals to a higher standard of living.
“We can’t do this work ourselves,” said Mauthe. “We’ve been partners with CFCU for a long time and they have backed us in so many ways – from some of the financing behind our projects, to Tim’s role on our board providing leadership to our agency, to some of the fundraising that happens year-round in the agency.”