Through many meetings over the past two years with community leaders, local government, non-profit and for-profit organizations, academia, and faith-based agencies, the CFSA CED team was able to establish four partnership councils: workforce development, regional housing task force, community health task force, and a leadership coalition. These councils allowed the CED team to begin the process of finding existing needs in our community and to develop the concept tool that would be established to link organizations and individuals with the service community. As a result and through major funding, the Community Knowledge Network began formation to provide an internet-based tool to promote the collaboration of all sectors and to provide coordinated services following the impact of Hurricane Katrina. More information on this initiative is on the link to the left.

The workforce development task force has worked closely with major stakeholders on workforce in the community. After many meetings and a collaboration of community partners, CFSA is very excited to announce CED’s first offspring, the Southwest Alabama Workforce Development Council Region 9 (SAWDC9). You can read more about this new initiative on the link to the left.

Representatives from diverse perspectives have been involved with the Housing Task force. They are focusing on providing direct community training and outreach in challenged low income communities; examining issues of financing housing for development, zoning options, and legal barriers; and promoting advocacy and policy efforts. Rev. John Whitfield will oversee the efforts of this task force.

The recently formed healthy community task force is meeting monthly. Their first two foci the group is tackling are the need of getting health education to those most in need, and the lack of reliable transportation for health appointments and crisis situations.

CED has also partnered with the Alabama Department of Postsecondary Education to explore the delivery of adult learning in this region. The taskforce is now working with SAWDC9 to examine how to reach the hardest to reach.

Throughout all the meetings and convenings, CED sought to incorporate leadership development, to reach out in particular to those community voices not usually heard. Through the Fellows Program, CED would like to see more grass root leadership involved, and then see them become grass top leadership. Read more about this on the link to the left.

Through generous contributions from the Ford Foundation, CFSA has been able to award leadership and capacity grants through the CED Grant Making Portfolio. Some of the grants made are as follows:
    • $20,000 to Mobile Development Enterprise for year one of a two year grant for a micro business loan

       program
    • $51,000 to Lighthouse Community Development Corporation as the second of a three-year grant that

       will promote and assist the establishment of 90 small and micro businesses during the next few

       years
    • $44,000 to the University of South Alabama Center for Healthy Communities to establish the CED

       Fellow Program
    • $20,000 to United Way of Central Alabama to establish Individual Development Accounts for low to

       moderate income persons

CFSA is excited that EDCA, Economic Development Corporation of Alabama, is in the final stages of forming after receiving $50,000 from the CFSA Community Endowment. Under the direction of Michael Pierce, this new nonprofit organization will target commercial development, residential housing, financial/credit counseling, home-buyer education, mortgage loans, small business loans, etc. EDCA will provide residents in the targeted areas with an array of products and services typically not found in struggling communities. More information on this organization will be forthcoming in future newsletters.

CFSA’s grant to United Way of Central Alabama provided a local match for them to receive federal funds to provide funding for at least thirteen low-to-moderate income individuals in the Mobile area to open an Individual Development Account (IDA) and receive a 2-to-1 match on individuals’ savings to go toward purchasing a first home, attend college or technical school, or capitalize a small business. United Way of Central Alabama partnered with the IRS, CFSA, and local agencies to implement the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program (VITA) to provide guidance on income tax credits available for low to moderate income individuals and senior citizens. Impact Alabama recruited college students to volunteer in the VITA program. The collaborative effort resulted in a six-fold increase in tax returns filed in Mobile bringing $816,262 in refunds back to our area, $457,861 of which came from Earned Income Tax Credit. This partnership has been a small opportunity to make a big difference in people’s lives.

Our community partners are very supportive of the CFSA CED initiative.     

“...CED has brought in national experts in both initiatives (workforce and affordable housing). This has been very valuable to us to help us recognize best practices and to give us the opportunity to share what we’ve learned with others...In workforce development, CED has helped us move from total volunteer efforts to a very professional non-profit with full-time staff, supported by a funding collaborative. In affordable housing, CED has a staff member as an ex-officio board member of the Baldwin Housing Alliance which is in the search process for an Executive Director. In both cases, we are depending on continued support from CED to get these efforts up and able to stand on their own.” Bob Higgins, Vice President Baldwin County Economic Development Alliance.

“...Mobile is on the cusp of greatness, and the key to long term economic stability is the development of a quality education system, adequate and affordable housing,, and workforce development. The CED initiative has taken visionary leadership in all these areas...The Mobile Area Education Foundation...is excited about the work ahead of us.” Jeremiah Newell, Program Director Mobile Area Education Foundation.

The Lighthouse Community Development Corporation recently helped Mr. and Mrs. Demetrius Harris become a first time homeowner in Grand Bay. The Harris’s said, “We are a young family and needing assistance and encouraging direction to navigate this (homeownership) process... This has made a difference in our lives.”

The following was taken from an article that appeared in the Business Section June 15, 2008 of the Press-Register, Mobile, Alabama (Courtesy of the Press-Register 2008 © All rights reserved. Reprinted with permission):

“...Earlier this spring the Small Business Development Center at the Clinton L. Johnson Center for Economic Development received a $20,000 grant from CFSA to launch its Micro Loan Business Program...The program fits with the center’s mission to spur economic activity in depressed areas. All three entrepreneurs said (receiving) the loans have been key in facilitating business growth. ‘I cannot begin to explain to you the encouragement and push it has given me.’” Danny Gibson, owner of Quality Lawn Care - loan recipient.

As CFSA looks back, we are grateful for Owen Drey’s leadership of the CED initiative. As we look forward with anticipation to the significant role CED will play in our community, CFSA recently hired Danny K. Patterson, Founder of the Lighthouse Community Development Corporation, to work full time leading the CED team and initiative. Please direct all inquiries on the CED initiative to Mr. Patterson.