2/15/2018
As work is underway to create justice housing at the Maycroft for 64 families with low incomes, work is also underway to create a development committee of Jubilee’s board that will support future justice housing.
Co-chaired by Rhonda Buckley and Liz Wainger, the committee will engage current and new supporters to raise visibility and resources for Jubilee.
The committee brings together members of Jubilee’s board with former Jubilee Support Alliance (JSA) members and other champions of the organization. Already, Louise Boulton-Lear, who was active in JSA, has accepted a lead role on the new committee, which is aiming for a dozen plus dedicated members.
“Through the development committee, Jubilee hopes to enlarge the community of stakeholders who care about justice housing—housing that’s affordable to those who need it most, coupled with opportunities we all need to succeed and located in resource-rich neighborhoods,” said Jubilee Executive Director Jim Knight.
“To expand justice housing we need financial resources, and to raise financial resources, we need human resources,” he said. “The development committee is an extension of our commitment to justice housing and to capacity building.”
The first meeting of the full development committee will take place in March. In the meantime, initial committee members are recruiting others, identifying new opportunities for corporate and individual support of Jubilee, and planning future Maycroft hard-hat tours. A couple members of the committee joined a handful of Jubilee supporters and staff at the first tour in January.
The tour kicked off with comments from resident Phil Brooks about his work on the tenant association, which aggressively supported Jubilee’s bid for the Maycroft. Jubilee Vice President of Strategic Initiatives Martin Mellett provided insider details about the Maycroft renovation as the group walked through the lobby, ground level—where Jubilee and Martha’s Table will house several programs—and a few apartments. Dressed in hard hats and sturdy shoes, visitors experienced the Maycroft in its rawest stages. The tour concluded back in the lobby, where everyone enjoyed lunch and conversation about the building and Jubilee’s upcoming work.
The next hard-hat tour is scheduled for February 26.