NeighborWorks® - Newsroom - Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 20, 2003

CONTACTS:
Brad German, Freddie Mac
703-903-2437
Mark Burneko, NRC
202-220-2360

NRC Announces Kevin Bibbs Memoriam Scholarship to Honor
Achievements of Community Development Advocate
Scholarship Covers Tuition for National and Regional Training Institutes

ATLANTA, GA -- The Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation (NRC) today announced the creation of the Kevin Bibbs Memoriam Scholarship to honor the memory and contributions of Kevin Bibbs, director of community development lending at Freddie Mac. The new memoriam scholarship will enable NeighborWorks® community development practitioners to attend Neighborhood Reinvestment's national and regional Training Institutes.

Kevin Bibbs is being honored for his lifetime of contributions to the field of community development. Bibbs was widely recognized for playing a critical role in crafting new community development lending initiatives during his ten year career at Freddie Mac and, previously, at the Michigan State Housing Development Agency.

"This scholarship will help hundreds of dedicated people apply the comprehensive education and experience gained through the Training Institute to their efforts in communities nationwide," said Ellen Lazar, executive director of Neighborhood Reinvestment. "I cannot think of a more fitting tribute to the life of Kevin Bibbs."

"This scholarship preserves Kevin Bibbs' legacy among his colleagues and all those who share his passion for revitalizing neighborhoods and helping more families live in homes of their own," said Craig Nickerson, vice president of community development lending at Freddie Mac. "I want to thank Ellen Lazar and NRC for providing such a thoughtful and appropriate memorial to Kevin's legacy."

Letha Thomas, of Community Action Project of Tulsa County, Oklahoma received the first Kevin Bibbs Memoriam Scholarship today at the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation's Training Institute in Atlanta. She was nominated for the scholarship by the NRC's South Central District.

Candidates are selected from a pool of applicants provided by local NeighborWorks organizations. Five scholarships are awarded each year. For the rest of 2003, selected candidates will attend the Training Institutes in Chicago, New Orleans, Washington, and San Francisco.

Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation is a public, nonprofit established by Congress in 1978 to promote community revitalization nationwide. The Corporation provides training, technical assistance, risk evaluation and strategic funding to expand and maintain the strength of the NeighborWorks® network of more than 220 organizations. The nation's NeighborWorks network serves more than 2,300 urban, suburban and rural communities and in 2002 generated more than $1.7 billion in local investments. More information on the NeighborWorks system is available at http://www.nw.org.

Freddie Mac is a stockholder-owned corporation chartered by Congress in 1970 to create a continuous flow of funds to mortgage lenders. By supplying lenders with the money to make mortgages and packaging the mortgages into marketable securities, Freddie Mac sustains a stable mortgage credit system and reduces the mortgage rates paid by homebuyers. Over the years, Freddie Mac has opened the doors for one in six homebuyers in America and two million renters. More information on Freddie Mac can be found on the company's Web site located at www.freddiemac.com.