2023 was a year of change. Our country was trying to move on from, and even forget, COVID, while many in our community were and are still dealing with its impacts. Our members were their creative, resourceful, and whole selves while navigating an ever-changing world.

We, as an organization, tried to help with that navigation by using American Rescue Plan funds, granted to us by the City of Durham and the Oak Foundation, to help Members clear some of the housing debt that they acquired due to COVID.

This money helped our Members stay in their homes or clear debt to move somewhere more affordable and also highlighted the need for longer-term stability. We also hired an advocacy manager to design a plan of where our advocacy should and could go, including the start of tenant unions.

This will put power back in the hands of the people most affected by the issues of housing and financial instability. We also worked towards closing the racial wealth gap through our First Time Homebuyers program, in which our Members’ savings were matched by Metlife for Durham and Town of Chapel Hill for Chapel Hill and put towards a first home.

We believe in a pathway from being unhoused to homeownership and want to support that through providing information, gathering documents, and providing funds for down payments. We are looking forward to supporting our CEF community in 2024.