NLIHC partners, friends, and supporters attended NLIHC’s 2022 Virtual Housing Leadership Awards Celebration honoring the affordable housing leadership of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), Ann O’Hara, and Representative Ritchie Torres (D-NY) on April 28. The Celebration recognized these leaders for their outstanding contributions to affordable housing for those most in need.
NLIHC Board Chair and A Community of Friends CEO Dora Leong Gallo opened the celebration with words of welcome to all and congratulations to the three honorees and stated that our collective effort to achieve housing affordability for those most in need “has never been more important.” Dora introduced Vanessa Rodriguez – managing director and head of community lending and investment at Wells Fargo, the event sponsor – who congratulated the honorees and thanked NLIHC and all the advocates at the event for their leadership and advocacy in solving the affordability crisis in the U.S.
The Congressional Progressive Caucus
The 2022 Edward W. Brooke Housing Leadership Award was presented to the Congressional Progressive Caucus for its exceptional commitment to advancing historic affordable housing investments to address homelessness and housing poverty in the U.S. The award is named for Senator Edward Brooke (R-MA), who as a U.S. senator and later as chair of the NLIHC board of directors championed low-income housing. Washington-state tenant-leader and NLIHC Board Member Mindy Woods offered words of congratulations and appreciation to the CPC and to Representative Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), chair of the Caucus, for their leadership during the pandemic. Representative Jayapal accepted the award on behalf of the entire Caucus, stating that the CPC “is committed to ensuring housing as a human right in this country; every person deserves a safe and affordable place to live.”
Ann O’Hara
The Dolbeare Lifetime Service Award, named for NLIHC’s founder Cushing Niles Dolbeare, a pioneer of the affordable housing movement, was awarded to Ann O’Hara for her decades of advocacy for quality, accessible, affordable homes for extremely low-income households as a public housing authority director, Section 8 administrator, state housing official, founder and associate director of the Technical Assistance Collaborative (TAC), and NLIHC board member. Ann was congratulated and honored with inspiring words of gratitude from TAC Director Lisa Sloane and other colleagues whom Ann has impacted during her career. In her acceptance of the award, Ann stated, “I have no doubt Cushing would be extraordinarily proud of (NLIHC’s) work; but I also know she would tell us all to seize this moment and to redouble our efforts because the unmet need for housing is so enormous. . . . I know you will be successful.”
Representative Ritchie Torres (D-NY)
Representative Ritchie Torres (D-NY) received the Sheila Crowley Housing Justice Award, named after former NLIHC President and CEO Sheila Crowley, for his outstanding leadership in elevating the need for historic affordable housing investments for people with the lowest incomes in 2021. New York tenant-leader and NLHC Board Member Loraine Brown shared words of congratulations and thanks to Representative Torres. “The fight for affordable housing is my raison d’etre, it’s in my DNA,” said Representative Torres in his acceptance speech. “There is no organization that champions the moral vision of an affordable America with as much rigor and relentlessness as the National Low Income Housing Coalition. . . . Please know that you will always have in me a lifelong partner, now and always.”
NLHIC President and CEO closed the event with her own words of congratulations to the honorees, and she expressed gratitude to the event sponsors and host committee. She concluded with a promise: “We will keep fighting until we end homelessness and housing poverty, until we achieve housing justice, once and for all.”
You can still recognize these outstanding leaders by donating to NLIHC in their honor at: https://bit.ly/LEADERS22
Or text LEADERSHIP to 41444 to donate in honor of the awardees.