U.S. SENATOR CHRIS DODD AND HDF RECIPIENTS
OF CONNECTICUT APPLESEED 2008 GOOD APPLE AWARDS
STAMFORD,
Conn., May 28, 2008 -- Connecticut Appleseed recently presented
the 2008 Good Apple Awards to U.S. Senator Chris Dodd and
the Housing Development Fund (HDF). The senator also served
as the keynote speaker at the organization’s second
annual Spring Event, which was held in Stamford’s Metro
Center. Connecticut Appleseed is a non-profit organization
providing statewide legal assistance, advocacy and education
in the areas of health care, education, immigration and child
welfare.
“We laud Senator Dodd for his work in Congress, where
he serves as Chair of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing
and Urban Affairs. We are also delighted to honor HDF for
its great strides in financing and advocating for affordable
housing,” said Martin L. Budd, Connecticut Appleseed
Board Chair.”
Budd explained that Connecticut Appleseed’s core competence
is leveraging volunteer legal resources to advance social
justice. Each year, the organization mobilizes hundreds of
hours of pro bono help to broaden access to financial services
and to mitigate Connecticut’s glaring disparities in
children’s health and educational achievement.
“HDF is tremendously honored to receive the Connecticut
Appleseed Good Apple award along with Senator Dodd,”
said HDF President & CEO Joan Carty. “Both Appleseed
and Senator Dodd share our commitment to developing solutions
for the greater good of Connecticut residents.”
HDF is a unique nonprofit bank providing funding for affordable
housing and an array of homebuyer education and assistance
programs. To date,
HDF has leveraged over $100 million in first mortgage activity
en route to financially assisting 713 first-time homebuyers,
including over 160 former residents of public housing. HDF
projects have also included senior housing, special needs
housing and supportive housing, among others.
At the event, Senator Dodd, Chair of the Senate Committee
on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs spoke on the current
economic situation, the stresses in financial markets and
federal efforts to defuse the subprime mortgage crisis.
“I am deeply honored to be receiving the Good Apple
award,” said Senator Dodd. “Connecticut Appleseed
deserves many thanks for all its good works, through which
there has always been a common thread. Whether it is its work
with children, with new immigrants or those trapped in our
criminal justice system, Connecticut Appleseed provides hope
and opportunity to so many in our state. Appleseed understands
the connection between legal advocacy and community activism
and how both relate to building a more just society.”
Connecticut Appleseed is a statewide, non-partisan 501(c)3
organization whose mission is to develop solutions for the
causes, rather than the symptoms, of our state’s social
problems. It advances social justice by recruiting and deploying
volunteer lawyers and other professionals to bring about systemic
changes that improve the lives of this state’s disadvantaged
citizens. Rather than serving individual clients, Connecticut
Appleseed places its emphasis on developing practical and
lasting solutions for chronic injustices in health care, public
education, child welfare and immigration. For more information,
visit www.ctappleseed.org or call Executive Director Bob Kettle
at 203-210-5356.
The Housing Development Fund was founded in 1989. It has expanded
to serve all of southwestern Connecticut from its Stamford
headquarters and a Danbury office opened in 2004. HDF’s
homebuyer assistance programs include its First Time Homebuyers
Program, SmartMove low interest second mortgage program, CHFA
(Connecticut Housing Finance Authority) approved Homebuyer
Education Classes Program and Below Market Rate Program (BMR).
HDF is a HUD-certified lender and Housing Counseling agency.
The organization provides homebuyers with homebuyer finance,
counseling and assistance programs.
HDF offers low-interest, flexible financing to developers
through its Multi-Family Lending Program. HDF also offers
technical assistance to municipalities, and works with the
private sector, other nonprofits, and government entities
to facilitate the development of more affordable housing.
Through its Advocacy Initiative, HDF convenes symposia for
business leaders and community decision makers featuring national,
regional and local experts on important topics related to
affordable housing and homeownership.
The organization manages public/private partnerships to lend
funds for these affordable housing initiatives. It has the
largest public/private pool of mortgage financing for affordable
housing in Connecticut – both homeownership and multi-family
development- $60 million.
The Housing Development Fund, Inc. is headquartered at 100
Prospect Street, South Tower Plaza, Stamford, Connecticut,
and maintains an office at 8 West Street, in Danbury. For
additional information call Tami Strauss at 203-969-1830 x19
or visit www.hdf-ct.org
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