netNews102108

October 21, 2008

NeighborWorks America Provides Nearly $1.3 Million
to NHS of New York City in Support of its Overall Operations

U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer joins NeighborWorks America, who provided a nearly $1.2 million grant to its network member Neigborhood Housing Services of New York City for overal operations.

(L-R) Zenobia McNally, board member, NHS of East Flatbush; Janelle Greene, director of governmental relations, NHSNYC; Tonya Ores, director, NHS of East Flatbush; Sarah Gerecke, CEO, NHSNYC; U.S. Senator Charles Schumer (NY); Eileen Fitzgerald, COO, NeighborWorks America; Deborah Boatright, Northeast district director, NeighborWorks America; Susan Jouard, Northeast district management consultant for communications & public affairs, NeighborWorks America; Sika Pryor, senior advisor, public policy and legislative affairs, NeighborWorks America.

NeighborWorks America has awarded $1,276,000 to its member organization, Neighborhood Housing Services (NHS) of New York City (NYC) to support its overall operations and capital investments in the city. United States Senator Charles Schumer (NY), a long time supporter of NHS of NYC, joined NeighborWorks COO Eileen Fitzgerald and Northeast District Director Deborah Boatright for the check presentation.

In welcoming the Senator, Fitzgerald acknowledged his longtime support of NeighborWorks and thanked him for his dedication to addressing the issue of increasing foreclosures, not only in New York, but also across the country. Fitzgerald reported that over the last five years, NeighborWorks America has invested nearly
$56 million in New York, which has in turn leveraged $1.9 billion in direct investment in the state. This latest award to NHS of NYC will be used to educate homeowners, help maintain access to credit, renovate buildings and stores, and help to keep communities vital and secure.

NHS of NYC CEO Sarah Gerecke accepted the award on behalf of her organization. At the Senator’s urging, Gerecke spoke about her organization’s foreclosure efforts and some of the new challenges she saw emerging across the state. She explained, for example, while there have been successes in achieving loan modifications for struggling homeowners, some are still accepting new agreements that don’t work well for them, and are re-defaulting on their new loans. But NHS of NYC is a flagship organization in the state and is in a strong position to meet the evolving challenges of foreclosure.