Summer 2014 
Opening Doors Newsletter
From your friends at NeighborWorks Lincoln
In This Issue
NeighborWorks Lincoln is Moving!
NeighborWorks Week June 7th-15th
Turning Dreams of Homeownership into a Reality
Opening Doors Event
New Faces at NWL
News of Note at NWL
Quick Links
Find us on Facebook!
Be A Good Neighbor

Meet the youth living on your block and greet them by name. Learn about the young people who live in your neighborhood. This will ensure each adult is able to help in an emergency and is better prepared to discuss problems as they arise. This simple approach may even increase youth participation in neighborhood activities such as neighborhood clean ups or neighborhood watch.

Join Our Mailing List

Office Move

 

 

This summer, NeighborWorks Lincoln (NWL) will be moving into our new permanent office space, located at 2530 "Q" Street. This three-story, 4,600 square foot, turn-of-the-century house will provide much needed office space and room to grow. 

 

The garage located on the property has been renovated and converted into an accessible community meeting room, where Homebuyer Education classes and NWL meetings will be held. Parking will be available for staff and visitors right off of the alley between "Q" and "R" streets. 

 

NeighborWorks Lincoln is excited about this next chapter of our organization's story. We believe that this new space will enable us to better serve the residents of Lincoln and will help us to forward our mission of keeping Lincoln a safe and prosperous community. We are truly grateful to our community partners and supporters who were instrumental in the completion of this project. We hope that you will stop by and see us after we move into our new home!  

 

NeighborWorks Week

 

 

Dedicated volunteers, civic leaders, and residents will come together the week of June 7-15 to celebrate local neighborhood projects during the 31st Annual National NeighborWorks Week, a week-long celebration of revitalization and transformation in more than 4,400 neighborhoods across the country. 

 

During NeighborWorks Week, local NeighborWorks organizations mobilize tens of thousands of volunteers, business people, neighbors, friends, and local and national elected civic leaders in a week of neighborhood change and awareness. They rehab and repair homes, paint and landscape properties, conduct neighborhood tours, recognize successful partnerships, and host events that educate, train and inform. Thousands of families benefit from the week's activities nationwide.

 

NeighborWorks Lincoln will be participating in a number of activities during NeighborWorks Week 2014. The events in Lincoln will highlight projects that are the result of the hard work and dedication of several community members and leaders who have worked with NeighborWorks Lincoln and/or completed NWL's resident leadership training courses. A list of scheduled events during NeighborWorks Week includes the following:

 

  • Saturday, June 7th, 9:00 am - 1:00 pm 
    East Campus Community Organization Garden Tour
  •  

    Sunday, June 8th, 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm 

    Hartley Neighborhood Walking Tour

     

    Wednesday, June 11th, 3:00 pm - 7:00 pm 

    University Place Community Market 

     

    Saturday, June 14th, 8:00 am - 4:00 pm 

    Celebration of Air Park

     

    Sunday, June 15th, 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm 

    Woods Park Home Tour on South 29th Street

     

    To learn more about NeighborWorks Week or to get more information on the schedule of events, please click here to visit our website, or contact Pat Anderson-Sifuentez at [email protected].

     

    Turning Homeownership Dreams into a Reality

     

    NeighborWorks Lincoln is committed to promoting homeownership in the city of Lincoln through our Homeownership Program, which includes our Home Buyer Education classes, as well as our Down Payment Assistance program. In May of this year, NeighborWorks Lincoln was able to assist one very special family in achieving their dream of homeownership.

     

    Babeir Khibil, his wife Hiba Assi, and their 3 children immigrated to the United States from Iraq in 2012. Babeir currently works at Tecumseh Poultry, which is where he learned from coworkers about NWL's Homeownership Program. Babeir wanted to provide a home for himself and his family, but special circumstances required that Babeir and his family move into an accessible, one-story home with a level lot. Babeir's oldest son has cerebral palsy, and a one-story home would mean that he could maneuver in and out of the house more easily. 

     

    Babeir and Hiba attended NWL's Homeownership classes in February, and were pre-approved for a home purchase soon thereafter. They were able to find a nice ranch-style house in midtown Lincoln, and decided it would make a great home for their family. While the home was in great shape, and had been treated with care by the previous owners, there was additional rehabilitation required to help make the home more accessible for their eldest son. As a result of the help from our partners at the Nebraska Department of Economic Development and the City of Lincoln, Babeir and his family were able to utilize our Down Payment Assistance Program, purchase the home, and they were happy to move into their new home in May. The rehab work is currently underway, and the family is very appreciative of the assistance that NeighborWorks Lincoln and our partners were able to provide.  

     

    Join Us at an Upcoming "Opening Doors" Event

     

    NeighborWorks Lincoln wants to get the word out about what we do! Please join us at one of our upcoming "Opening Doors" events, where you can meet staff and Board Members from NeighborWorks Lincoln, and learn a little bit more about all of the work we are doing to revitalize the Lincoln community. At these hour-long information sessions, we will take you on a "tour" of our mission, which is to keep Lincoln a safe and prosperous community by revitalizing neighborhoods and promoting homeownership. You will learn about each of our three core programs through firsthand stories from individuals whose lives have been impacted by the work that we do.

     

    Opening Doors events are being held at our brand new training facility located at 2530 "Q" Street, and are held on the first Thursday of the month from 8:00 am - 9:00 am and every third Tuesday of the month from 4:30 pm - 5:30 pm. Light refreshments will be provided. We limit the number of guests at each event to 15, so please register here to reserve your spot today! We look forward to connecting with you!

     

    New Faces

     

    NeighborWorks Lincoln is pleased to announce the addition of two new staff members. Mary Nelson has joined the team as our new Chief Development Officer. Mary has a Master of Public Administration degree from the University of Nebraska at Omaha, and has nearly ten years of development experience in the non-profit sector. Mary will be responsible for the development and implementation of all fundraising initiatives for NeighborWorks Lincoln. 

     

    Alex Cowsky has also joined the NeighborWorks team as the new Administrative Assistant. Alex has most recently been employed at Union Bank where she has worked since 2012. She is a graduate of Nebraska Wesleyan University where she majored in Spanish, Global Studies, and has a minor in Political Science.  

     

    News of Note at NeighborWorks

     

     

    Enersen Urban Design Award 

    NeighborWorks Lincoln is proud to have been the recipient of the Enersen Urban Design Award at the 36th Annual Mayor's Arts Awards on May 28th, for our work on the Antelope Creek Village project. With assistance from the City of Lincoln, the State of Nebraska, and our partners on a national level, NWL revitalized a section of Lincoln's Malone & Hawley Historic Neighborhoods between 23rd and 24th, "P" and "Q" Streets. The Antelope Creek Village project includes 18 mixed-income and single-family residences and has helped to attract richness in socioeconomic, social, and ethnic diversity to the neighborhood. We are truly honored to receive this recognition.

      

    Cooper Foundation Grant

    The Cooper Foundation recently awarded NeighborWorks Lincoln with a $10,000 grant. Funds will be used to support their Community Engagement Initiative, which is a program that builds community leadership and enables residents to implement neighborhood improvement projects.

      

    Neighborhood Marketing Program Grant 

    NeighborWorks Lincoln also recently received a "Neighborhood Marketing Program" grant from NeighborWorks America, which will allow us to implement creative marketing and stabilization strategies aimed at bolstering neighborhood strengths and attracting and retaining residents, businesses, and investment. The NWL Community Building and Engagement team will be working with the Clinton Neighborhood Association and other community stakeholders on this pilot project, and will focus on developing a creative marketing campaign that will build a positive neighborhood brand.  

     

    Thanks to all of our community partners for your continued support and generous recognition of NeighborWorks Lincoln!