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Wells Fargo Gives ‘$1 Million’ Donation Towards Betterment Of Rural Life



07/31/2015

Wells Fargo makes generous donations to Safe and Sound rural initiatives, whereby to uplift the lives of the rural inhabitants of the U.S.


Dailycsr.com – 31 July 2015 – The housing foundation of Wells Fargo is to donate “$1 million to NeighborWorks America”, announced the company on the 27th of July 2015. The company also wishes to “serve as lead funder”, whereby leading an example of the new initiatives of the national non-profits which comes under “Safe and Sound rural initiative”. This is going to be a “collaborative effort” which hopes to “strengthen nine rural communities” by improving lives either through rehabilitation or by “replacing 50 substandard owner-occupied homes”.
 
NeighborWorks America to grant “$128,500 to each of nine nonprofits” under the initiative plan of “Safe and Sound rural initiative”. The overall programme has been valued at a “$1.2 million”. Business Wire enumerates the nine recipients of the “2015 NeighborWorks America Safe & Sound rural grant”:
1. Burlington, Vt.: Champlain Housing Trust
2. Elizabethtown, N.Y.: Housing Assistance Program of Essex County
3. Great Falls, Mont.: NeighborWorks Great Falls
4. Kingston, N.Y.: RUPCO
5. Rochester, N.Y.: PathStone Corporation
6. Roseburg, Ore.: NeighborWorks Umpqua
7. Russellville, Ark.: Universal Housing Development Corporation
8. Sisseton, S.D.: GROW South Dakota
9. Visalia, Calif.: Self-Help Enterprises
 
The recipients of the said grant will manage to build rural houses lifting the substandard while matching the “state and federal housing codes”, whereby adapting to “Energy Star-rated factory-built homes”. It will also be an effort to promote “energy efficiency” whereby raising the quality of air and water in the surroundings of “each of the homes”. The said grants were allocated based on a “competitive application process” which was conducted in the beginning of this year. The applications had to fit in the criteria of “feasibility, capacity, work quality, Green standards and removing health risks for the homeowner”.
 
The housing foundation of Wells Fargo’s assistant director, Connie Wright said:
“Wells Fargo is delighted to team with NeighborWorks America with this commitment to revitalize homes in rural communities. While we are encouraged to see improvement in many housing markets, sustainable and affordable housing continues to be a critical need in communities of all sizes. We understand we can’t solve these challenges on our own and when the public and private sector work together it can add up to make a huge difference for the community.”
 
A new survey conducted by NeighborWorks America with the help of the grant of “Wells Fargo Housing Foundation” that were awarded to the Safe and Sound programme reveals that people living in the rural regions of United States are less happy than the ones who live in “urban and suburban areas”. The study suggests that the job outlook and the local economy of the rural residents cause them to the dissatisfied; although an average of one third of the national population rates:
“...their economy and job situation as better than the national average”.
 
In the words of NeighborWorks America’s Rural Initiative’s director, David Dangler’s words:
“NeighborWorks America is working hard to invest in upgrading homes in rural areas and spotlight the unique challenges of adults in rural parts of the country. We are also making rural homes more energy efficient, so fewer people have to make tough choices between food or fuel.”





References:
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150727005390/en#.Vbjop_mqqko