2019 Third Quarter Report
Dear Friends:
Throughout the course of HOPE’s 25 years, partnerships have amplified our impact and fueled the attainment of our mission. Every day we partner with member-owners to build assets – through checking and savings accounts, through home-ownership, or through entrepreneurship. Through partnerships with community allies, we create spaces – quality schools, health care facilities and grocery stores – that enhance economic mobility in some of the nation’s most distressed communities. We collaborate with public officials and corporate leaders to ensure that policies and practices enhance, rather than limit the ability of vulnerable people and places to prosper.
This quarter we highlight several partnerships – with a member returning home to the Mississippi Delta, with a Historically Black University helping to anchor HOPE’s work in Montgomery, and with a Memphis school to revitalize a community. We also value our partnership with you, which makes stories like these possible. Thank you for your ongoing support of this important work.
Sincerely,
Bill Bynum, CEO, HOPE
ASU + HOPE = A Stronger Montgomery
Approximately 80% of the staff at Alabama State University (ASU), a Historically Black University, are members of Hope Credit Union. The partnership was seeded by Tri-Rivers Credit Union prior to a merger with HOPE and is now being deepened beyond the walls of the campus. ASU Chief of Staff Kevin Rolle is a member of HOPE, where he holds checking and savings account, along with an auto loan. He believes HOPE’s presence in Montgomery could have a “major economic impact.” Building on the existing relationships, HOPE sees promise in partnering with ASU and stakeholders in the surrounding neighborhood to advance community development priorities. “HOPE’s history of being a credit union that was established to help people that were redlined in the past tells me they will have longevity in the capital city of Alabama,” Rolle said.
Investing in an Education Ecosystem
Gestalt Community Schools recently held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new Power Center Academy Elementary and 9th Grade Academy. The project was the third financed by HOPE in partnership with Gestalt, one of the highest performing charter school operators in the state of Tennessee. With the opening of the new school providing high quality education to students from predominantly underserved neighborhoods, the Hickory Hill community kicked off a three year revitalization effort. “Two years ago, we held a meeting with our community stakeholders, partners and residents to discuss the current state of the Hickory Hill community,” said Yetta Lewis, president and CEO of Gestalt Community Schools. “It was clear to us that the need for quality education and additional community resources was necessary.”
Coming Back Home
Relocating from Nashville, Tenn., to Greenville, Miss., required Jermaine and Crystal – along with their three children – to move back in with his mother. The three-bedroom dwelling was a tight fit for the two families. “My children wanted their own house and they wanted sleepovers and parties. That was always in the back of mind,” said Jermaine, who did not want to rent. “We wanted to own something.” Their first stop was a local bank, where they were flatly turned down. A Facebook advertisement led them to HOPE. Not only did they qualify for a mortgage loan, they also were eligible for a Neighborhood LIFT down payment assistance grant. Within weeks, the family moved into their own brick home down the street from Jermaine’s mother.
3rd Quarter News
Jackson Celebrates HOPE’s Impact in Mississippi’s Capital City
Partners, members and local leaders recently celebrated the opening of a new facility at HOPE’s Jackson headquarters, and to celebrate the community development financial institution’s history of investment in Mississippi’s capital city. The new building enables HOPE to better support the growth experienced by the organization during the past decade. Since the 2008 financial crisis, HOPE has expanded from eight to 32 locations, with 240 employees in five states across the Deep South. In addition to being a major employer in Jackson, HOPE has substantially increased financial inclusion for its 12,000 Jackson members and their families, many of whom were previously underbanked or subjected to predatory payday lenders. In addition, HOPE has invested over $100 million to meet the financial needs of Jackson’s small business, homebuyers, and low-income consumers. “Thank you for remaining in Jackson” said Von Anderson, spokesperson for the city. “At a time when so many have divested, you have committed and helped us.”
HOPE Focuses Treasury Advisory Board on the Impact of Banking Deserts
At a recent meeting of the Treasury Department’s Community Development Advisory Board commemorating the 25th anniversary of the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund, HOPE CEO, Bill Bynum underscored the importance of the CDFI Fund as an essential partner in underserved communities, drawing parallels between the arc of the Fund’s evolution, and HOPE’s growth and impact. Drawing on lessons from HOPE’s work in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and during the Financial Crisis, Bynum called on those in attendance to anchor their decisions in on-the-ground data and realities; and to implement policies and practice that advance economic mobility for people and places not served by traditional banks. Bynum chaired the advisory board from 2002-2012.
Download 2019 3rd Quarterly Report
