Community Roots Housing Foundation

The Foundation undertakes annual fundraising for unrestricted funds to support Community Roots general operating needs as well as restricted funding to support Community Roots programs. Unrestricted funds support Community Roots' core activities in the seattle area building new affordable homes for lowincome individuals and families as well as operating and maintaining an existing portfolio of over 1,500 affordable homes for over 2,000 residents.

The Foundation also mobilizes restricted funds to support the capitol hill ecodistrict, a community-driven initiative that promotes an environmentally resilient, socially equitable, and culturally vibrant neighborhood in seattle's center city. The ecodistrict partners with a range of Community stakeholders, including residents, small businesses, Community organizations, city of seattle agencies, and major institutions to test innovative solutions to the livability and sustainability challenges of the most densely populated urban village in the pacific northwest.

The Foundation mobilizes both restricted funds to support Community Roots Housing's resident services program. Resident services partners with residents to encourage successful tenancy and Housing stability through resource and referral services, supportive programming, and Community engagement opportunities. The program is grounded in the belief that when residents have access to services and support, they need to thrive and not just survive, it creates cascading impacts of Housing stability, resiliency, and Community connectedness.

In addition to annual fundraising for ongoing programs and general operations, the Foundation also supports special initiatives of Community Roots Housing. The Foundation launched a targeted fundraising campaign, the Housing stabilization fund. Many households in the seattle area continue to face Housing insecurity and financial uncertainty exacerbated by the covid-19 pandemic. For those living on low incomes, the financial impacts of the pandemic are far from over, therefore we are actively raising funds for rental assistance for our residents. Beyond these efforts, the Foundation is the backbone organization for a collaborative $45 million capital campaign called rise together, which kicked off in december 2017. The campaign, led by six partner organizations, is supporting six equitable development projects in the seattle area that address urgent neighborhood issues including Housing affordability, displacement, Community health, economic development, and cultural preservation. Much of the capital funds are flowing through the Foundation, though a significant portion is also being secured by campaign partners. The campaign has led to the largest private gifts in the Foundation's history, including multi-million-dollar grants.