Homes On The Hill - 2006 Annual Meeting

2006 Annual Meeting

September 12, 2006

Pictures Below

Homes on the Hill, CDC, held its annual meeting on September 12 at the State of Ohio Department of Transportation offices on West Broad Street. HOTH, a neighborhood based organization founded in 1993, provides housing development, homeownership, and safety programs serving both English and Spanish speaking households.



HIGHLIGHTS

Highlights of the event included a key note speech by Michael Coleman, Mayor of Columbus. Mayor Coleman talked about the resurgence of the Greater Hilltop area as evidenced by efforts in infrastructure development, safety initiatives, and housing. He noted that Homes on the Hill has led this increased emphasis in bringing new energy and focus to the Greater Hilltop. He recognized HOTH for its leadership within the Columbus CDC community and for its growth and position within the west side.



BOARD MEMBERS ELECTED

The Homes on the Hill Board of Trustees introduced new board members and officers, many of whom are well recognized in the Westside. New Board members include Senator Steve Stivers, representing the 16^th District. Area residents elected to the HOTH board include Dave Dobos , owner of World Wise Computer Services, and community leader; Daryl Hennessey, owner of Hennessey Landscaping, former area commissioner and zoning chair; Helen Starghill, administrative assistant for Neighborhood House and former assistant at St. Al’s Family Center, and Jerolyn Barbee, Executive Director of the League of Women Voters.



PRESIDENT MOVES ONWARD & UPWARD

The organization noted the departure of Current President, Theresa Chelikowsky , who has assumed the position as

Executive Director of the Florida Association of Community Development Corporations. HOTH gave its most prestigious award, the Top of the Hill Award, to Ms. Chelikowsky in recognition of her eight years of leadership and dedication to Homes on the Hill and the Greater Hilltop Community.



BOARD OFFICERS ELECTED

Board officers for 2006 and 2007 are Ted Jones , Vice President of Armstrong Mortgage and former Housing Commissioner for the City of Toledo who was appointed President. Pastor Bob Alexander, form the Glenwood United Methodist Church continues his position as Vice President; Michael Cole, area commissioner and employee of the ADAMH Board was elected Secretary, and Mark Diemer, pastor of Grace of God Lutheran Church, was elected Treasurer.

NOTABLE AWARDS

Notable awards included Community Partner Awards to Councilmember Charletta Tarvares, head of the committee on Health, Housing, and Human Services for her long time support of HOTH and the CDC community. Councilmember Mike Mentel, council chair of Public Safety, also received a Community Partner Award for his support of HOTH’s safety initiatives. Other Community Partner Awards were given to Huntington National Bank, for their financial and volunteer support of HOTH’s homeownership programs and housing development. The Franklin County Board of Commissioner’s also received a Community Partner award for their support of HOTH housing development activities in the township and county areas of the Westside. A new partner award was given to the National Council for La Raza (NCLR) for their affiliation, technical assistance, and financial support of HOTH.

HOTH ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Executive Director Stephen Torsell and Homeownership & Counseling Program Manager Ellen Bardeen provided highlights of HOTH’s accomplishments in housing and homeownership education programs. Mr. Torsell reviewed the development activities of HOTH including the new construction partnership with Habitat for Humanity which was recognized earlier in the year with a program Excellence Award from the Ohio Association of Nonprofit Organizations. He also reviewed the HOTH single family rehab program, HOTH’s most successful and longest standing program. Ms. Bardeen noted the improvements in homeownership programs including the expansion of one-on-one credit counseling and foreclosure counseling. Both the single family rehab and homeownership counseling programs are HUD certified. The many volunteers and partners who have worked to make the last year a success were also recognized with certificates of appreciation. HOTH uses volunteers to assist in the homeownership education classes. More than 40 professionals with pertinent expertise currently provide assistance.



CONCLUSION

The evening concluded with a video presentation coordinated by board member Michael Cole. HOTH is supported by a variety of funders and is recognized by the City of Columbus , Franklin County , and the State of Ohio as a Certified Community Housing Development Organization (CHDO).



Copies of the video, additional still photos and live interviews with staff and Board members are available upon request.