Receives the HUD Secretary’s Award for Public-Philanthropic Partnerships during the Council on Foundations convention in Miami, Florida.
For the English version, Press here
Miami, April 30, 2019 – The Puerto Rico Community Foundation (FCPR) received today the HUD Secretary's Award for Public-Philanthropic Partnerships in recognition of the housing rehabilitation project Loíza Housing Project which has been operating since 2017 after Hurricane Maria, in alliance with Ricky Martin Foundation (RMF), the Municipality of Loíza, and the Institute for Socioeconomic and Housing Development of Puerto Rico (INDESOVI). The award, presented by The Council on Foundations (COF) and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), highlights partnerships between the philanthropic and public sectors to recognize the contributions of these alliances to the quality of life for low- and moderate-income citizens in the United States. The awards ceremony took place in Miami, Florida, during COF's 2019 Leading Together Conference.
Following the losses caused by the atmospheric phenomenon to the properties of hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans, FCPR identified the need to contribute to housing rehabilitation on the island, and particularly in Loíza, through grants to Community Housing Development Organizations (CHDOs), non-profit entities with which it has maintained a relationship for over 25 years; in this way, it reinforced the trajectory it has sustained for decades with housing rehabilitation in the country.
In the aftermath of the hurricane, the FCPR set a goal of assisting 200 households on the island. To date, 26 homes have been rehabilitated as part of this partnership in Loíza. In the other towns covered by the FCPR’s strategy, 31 out of 79 homes have been rehabilitated (39 %).
Loíza is one of the poorest towns on the island, where more than 1,000 housing units were damaged by Maria. The residences that benefited were beyond the reach of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and other federal agencies. “The collaborative home rehabilitation project in Loíza joined other initiatives that the Foundation has been promoting in this town, characterized by its economic and social vulnerability. For us, it has been a great achievement to see how the results of this alliance have restored security to families who practically lost everything; it is undoubtedly another example of how, together, we promote the increase of capital in our communities,” said Dr. Nelson I. Tarrats, president of the FCPR.
For her part, Bibiana Ferraiuoli Suárez, executive director of RMF, highlighted that “a home represents hope and security for families who have lost everything. That is why, after Hurricane Maria, Ricky Martin Foundation decided to rehabilitate residences in Loíza, where we have our community center, Centro TAU. To achieve this purpose, the Puerto Rico Community Foundation was the ideal ally. The collaboration among the alliance members has enriched our contribution to the Loíza community.”.
Meanwhile, Loíza's Mayor, Julia Nazario, highlighted the leading role that non-profit organizations have played in the reconstruction of Loíza's communities. “With the Puerto Rico Community Foundation (FCPR), we have achieved great progress. The alliances that the FCPR maintains with institutions from other latitudes have been providential for Loíza in many areas of interest such as violence prevention, they have stimulated our vision: a Loíza on the path to self-sufficiency, master of its destiny. In particular, housing rehabilitation was a priority due to the magnitude of the damage caused by Hurricane Maria. Even today, there are nearly 50 homes with blue roofs, and we will continue working with the same vigor,” Nazario pointed out.
Juan Sabathie, director of INDESOVI, highlighted that “the Loíza project has contributed to the non-profit entity's mission of promoting access to social housing for low-income families. It has also been an opportunity to promote the development of its residents, as they were part of the rehabilitation process of their own homes.”.