Resilience in Response

Annual Report 2020

A year unlike any other in memory, for all of us.

Yet, NeighborWorks America met the challenge on every front, even exceeding expectations. Whether it was COVID-19 relief, foreclosure counseling, senior assistance, veterans support or our focus on our network organizations, NeighborWorks stepped up to the challenge in 2020.

Letter from Board Chair

Martin Gruenberg

Letter from President & CEO

Marietta Rodriguez

In preparing to tell the story of 2020, I cannot help but stop and reflect on the many ways our organization and the NeighborWorks network exercised resilience. It was a regular Wednesday, March 11, 2020. The plan was to stress-test the capacity of our systems, have everyone work from home and then return to the office on Monday. At the time, the phrases “global pandemic,” “quarantine,” and “social-distancing” weren’t even a part of our vocabulary. At the writing of this message, we have yet to return to the office. Our organizational perspective and priorities changed on that Wednesday.

Our priorities and mandate were clear. We needed to leverage our relationships, resources, and expertise to ensure our network organizations could continue to operate, and their staff had the resources they needed. The residents and families they served had basic necessities. We did not have the luxury to wait or wonder how we would accommodate their needs. Our partners and funders stepped up immediately, allowing us to repurpose funds to provide capacity grants to our network organizations. Their support allowed our network to immediately shift to response and recovery, ensuring their community’s immediate and long-term needs.

I have personally been a part of the NeighborWorks family for most of my professional career. The more I see and experience the work of our network, the more I am humbled and amazed at their innovation, expertise, and resourcefulness. As President and CEO, I have the privilege and opportunity to speak with at least one of our network leaders daily. Their resilience and tenacity genuinely inspire me. They also inspired and motivated our staff to stretch and get creative in responding to unique and unforeseen challenges, and they did a fantastic job. Despite being in a global pandemic, we fast-tracked and introduced a new virtual learning platform and launched a national consumer protection initiative (StopHomeScams.org). We were also able to distribute grants for more than $22 million dollars to provide rental relief and capacity grants to more than 240 local non-profits.

2020 was not the year we expected, but it was the year we responded with resilience and respect. The NeighborWorks mission was never more critical than it is today. Together with our staff, Board of Directors, network organizations, stakeholders, and funders, we look forward with a renewed commitment to delivering on our mission every day to communities and residents across the country.

Marietta Rodriguez
President & CEO