Bank of America recently granted $50,000 to the Southwest Florida Stable and Attainable Housing Coalition to help address the needs of the community related to affordable housing, small business resiliency and neighborhood revitalization.
This new investment will go towards sustaining a community-changing initiative by coordinating cross-sector partners to ensure that 80 percent of Southwest Florida residents spend less than 45 percent of their income on housing and transportation combined.
“Bank of America has consistently partnered with Collaboratory and many nonprofit partners, local organizations and leaders across public and private sectors to help drive economic mobility for vulnerable populations,” said Dawn Belamarich, president and CEO of Collaboratory. “Making homeownership attainable is certainly one of the biggest challenges we face, and we are excited to support our partners in tackling that issue head-on.”
By working with Collaboratory in support of the Southwest Florida Stable and Attainable Housing Coalition’s initiatives, Bank of America is providing essential financial support to Southwest Florida residents in need of affordable housing. Collaboratory is just one of 14 Southwest Florida nonprofits the bank is supporting with economic mobility grants awarded to local nonprofits throughout the year to help tackle society’s biggest challenges.
“Developing strong partnerships with nonprofit organizations like Collaboratory to increase access to affordable housing resources is essential to driving meaningful and sustainable progress in our community,” said Gerri Moll, president, Bank of America Southwest Florida. “This grant builds upon our efforts to strengthen broader community vitality by raising awareness of programs that provide direct financial assistance to residents facing barriers to stable and attainable housing.”
Bank of America has supported Collaboratory for over 25 years, including a multi-year commitment to further FutureMakers Coalition’s goal of transforming Southwest Florida’s workforce. In 2022, a $300,000 grant from Bank of America helped create the Navigator program to connect adults needing training programs and students who previously attended college but did not complete a credential or certification to better paying jobs.
ABOUT COLLABORATORY
Collaboratory is committed to coordinating the solving of all Southwest Florida’s social problems by 2040 including homelessness, poverty, mental illness, illiteracy and more. We plan to do this with the entire community working together including people of all ages, colors, beliefs, and imaginations across all five counties.
We know many people say this is an audacious goal, but we’re driven by the inspiration of all those great figures in history who have come before us to achieve things no one thought were remotely possible.
Collaboratory was founded in 1976 as the Southwest Florida Community Foundation. It has made over $120 million in grants since then and is home to more than 600 philanthropic funds. It is upon that legacy of a commitment to community we plan to fulfill on that mission at the level of its greatest expression. As Collaboratory, we will finish what we started. Collaboratory provides backbone support to FutureMakers Coalition. To learn more and get involved, call 239-274-5900 or visit www.collaboratory.org.
ABOUT BANK OF AMERICA
Bank of America is one of the world’s leading financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving approximately 69 million consumer and small business clients with approximately 3,900 retail financial centers, approximately 15,000 ATMs (automated teller machines) and award-winning digital banking with approximately 57 million verified digital users. Bank of America is a global leader in wealth management, corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to approximately 4 million small business households through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations across the United States, its territories and more than 35 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BAC).
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