Hope in Action

HOPE in ACTION

AUGUST 2019

Delivering Hope for Two Decades

Some 27 years ago, Andy and Blenda Wright began their journey helping low-income families, single mothers, and youth to better their lives and futures. It was 1991 when Andy joined with Jeff Burum to launch SoCal Housing, which is now known as National CORE. Andy had spent years in the housing industry, but as he tells it, he was ready to make a difference. “It’s the greatest thing we’ve done,” he said, “There is such fulfillment in seeing others have a home, get a job, and moving forward in their lives.” Recently, the Wrights pledged a matching challenge to our donors to double contributions to Hope through Housing during 2019.

Their first project was Rancho Verde Village, an affordable apartment community for families in Rancho Cucamonga. And that is where the magic of Hope Through Housing began. Blenda would spend afternoons at the property nurturing youth in the community room with Jeff’s wife, Kellie. Blenda said she loved the diversity of the children and the unique abilities and beauty they brought to the property. “Our goal was for the kids to get their homework done, and then we could play games,” shared Blenda. “We found second-hand computers, brought cakes to celebrate birthdays, held pool parties and holiday events, and helped kids with school work.” Blenda shared the story of a 13-year-old girl who had struggled to learn to read, which was seriously impacting her grades. Blenda began working with her one-on-one each day and slowly her reading ability improved. Blenda was so proud when her former pupil graduated from high school with honors.

Today, Andy and Blenda’s legacy continues, not only because the organization has now grown to include a committed team of staff members dedicated to the same mission of helping youth break the cycle of poverty, but also because of their very generous personal contributions to Hope Through Housing. The Wrights recently pledged a matching challenge to double select donations to the organization during 2019. When asked why they have continued to remain committed for so many years, Andy’s answer was simple. “It’s the greatest thing we’ve done,” he said, “There is such fulfillment in seeing others have a home over their head, get a job, and moving forward in their lives.” Blenda summed up why she first got involved two decades ago by saying, “I did it because it made my heart feel good.” And that says it all.

To learn more about making a donation that will be matched by the Wrights, visit www.HTHF.org.

Countdown to CORE’s Got Talent!

Join Hope through Housing and National CORE for an exciting night of live performances and complimentary appetizers! Hope through Housing presents CORE’s Got Talent, a resident talent showcase, at the Canyon Montclair on Wednesday, August 21 at Montclair Place. Twelve of our most talented residents will be competing for $1,500 in cash prizes and the opportunity to perform at this year’s An Evening of Hope, Endless Possibilities on October 16. One performance will be honored with the People’s Choice Award based on guests’ votes.

There is no charge for admission. Doors open a 6:00 PM and the performances will begin at 6:30 PM.

For more information, please contact Jill Van Balen at jvanbalen@nationalcore.org, or reserve your seats at https://core.zohobackstage.com/coresgottalent.

 

Imagine All the Possibilities at An Evening of Hope 2019

National CORE and Hope through Housing invite you to this year’s An Evening of Hope, Endless Possibilities. With the launch of Hope through Housing’s Building Bright Futures program, and with your support, we are showing at-risk children that their future holds endless possibilities. A special thank you to our top sponsors: Andy & Blenda Wright, The Burum Family, Larry Van Noy and Mary Kwolek, Larson O’Brien, Gallant Risk & Insurance Services, Inc., Advanced Environmental Landscape Design and City National Bank. To see how you can be a part of this year’s Gala, please visit http://www.nationalcoregala.org/ or contact Alyssa Cotter at (909) 204-3446 or acotter@hthf.org.

Women of Hope in Action

Thank you to all of the sponsors, guests and Women of Hope members who made the Beauty, Bubbles & Bites event a success by raising more than $25,000 for Hope through Housing’s Building Bright Futures program. To see footage from the event, please go to BeautyBubbles&Bites. Proceeds from the event will benefit local youth enrolled in Hope’s after-school programs, to help them succeed academically and prepare them for future success.

The Back 2 School event is a part of Hope through Housing’s Building Bright Futures initiative, which focuses on preparing children and youth at our properties for a bright, fulfilling, productive and independent future. Building Bright Futures offers programs that address the academic and social needs to children living in poverty. Currently, Hope through Housing provides 30 onsite after-school programs within National CORE communities, providing children with a safe, nurturing environment where they can thrive.

We want to give a special thanks to our Back 2 School donors: Citizens Business Bank, BBVA, Sierra West Finish, CTBC Bank, WNC, Bank of America; as well as individual donors, Danny Sciortino and George Huang. We also want to thank our volunteers from Target, Amazon, Wells Fargo, UPS, and Hillside Church. If you are interested in participating in our Back 2 School events or are interested in other volunteer opportunities, please contact Sara Clark at sclark@hthf.org or (909)204-3415.

To learn how you can join Women of Hope, please visit www.hopethroughhousing.org/women-of-hope.

Southern California Edison Makes Understanding Time-Of-Use Rates Easy

In March 2019, Southern California Edison changed their Time-of-Use (TOU) rate options. It’s designed to benefit customers who use a lot of electricity and who can reduce or shift much of their usage away from the from 4-9 pm On-Peak hours. Try the Rate Plan Comparison Tool on SCE.com to see whether you can save money on a different rate plan. Visit www.sce.com/rateplantool. (Note: The Rate Plan Comparison Tool only works for customers who have at least 12 months of usage history on their current account).

 

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