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2012 Community Development Award Winners

Thursday, April 26th, 2012

Gail Ross gives a highly entertaining acceptance speech that makes everyone laugh.

We are happy to say several CEDAM members received awards at the 2012 Building Michigan Communities Conference.

CEDAM CED Advocate of the Year
Gail Ross, Executive Director of the Hancock Housing Commission

Given to the organization or person who has done the most to advance community economic development in Michigan. Through tremendous perseverance and many hours of hard work, Gail and the Hancock Housing Commission opened the doors of Quincy Haven Apartments in August 2011.

One minute video with footage of Quincy Haven Apartments.

CEDAM Innovator of the Year
Vanguard CDC

Presented to an inventive CEDAM member that has enlightened the field with new programming, best practices, or policy leadership. Vanguard’s programs extend from a community news phone service to a prisoner reentry and reintegration program.

One minute video

Vanguard award photo

Scott Allen Davis, Executive Director of Vanguard CDC, and Jamie Schriner-Hooper watch the award introduction video on stage.

HFH Affiliate of the Year
Blue Water Habitat for Humanity (CEDAM member!)

Given to an outstanding Habitat for Humanity affiliate. In 2011, Blue Water Habitat for Humanity contributed over 30,000 hours to construction, deconstruction, advocacy and other projects. Blue Water also participated in the 2011 Legislators Building Communities event.

One minute video

MSHDA Housing Counseling Agency of the Year
Center for Financial Health (CEDAM member!)

In 2011 alone, the Center served more than 700 households by helping homeowners forego foreclosure and assisting new home buyers realize their goal of homeownership.

MSHDA Counselor of the Year
Laura Castone, Amandla Community Development Corporation

Laura Castone has successfully negotiated satisfactory home retention options for more than 200 Detroit based homeowners and has helped improve the financial management skills and credit awareness of hundreds more.

MDRC Corrie Bair Building Inclusive Communities Award
Cheryl Trommater

Granted to an individual making communities and housing accessible to all. Cheryl Trommater advanced numerous initiatives to address what people with developmental disabilities need to live independently.

One and a half minute video

CSH Julie Sandorf Award
Teri Durian

Recognizes tenants who demonstrate leadership in supportive housing. Teri Durian created support groups for her fellow tenants and makes personal donations to buy food for tenants who do not have enough to eat.

One minute video

FHLBI Michigan Community Spirit Award
Bernie Williams, CEO of Wanagas Credit Union

Awarded to an individual in the banking industry who is dedicated to affordable housing and community economic development. Under Bernie Williams’ leadership, Wanagas Credit Union helped many households and first-time home buyers.

One minute video

Duvernay Award

“You can’t look back in your life and find too many people that have that big an impact on you… Terry was certainly one of them.” – Jim Logue

The Duvernay Award is presented annually by MSHDA to the person who best reflects the ideals and personal qualities exhibited by Terry. The video below vividly demonstrates those ideals and qualities through people who knew Terry best, including Doug Shelby, Patricia Lake, Dwight Robinson, Jim Logue, Linda Smith, Jonathan Bradford, Eugene Kuthy and Mark McDaniel.

Evelyn Brown was announced as the winner of the 2012 Duvernay Award.

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Me? Do people’s taxes? Definitely not.

Tuesday, September 13th, 2011

Looking for a unique way to help out in your community? You should think about serving as a volunteer tax preparer this tax season!

Not only will you save families in your community a lot of money on tax preparation, you’ll help bring thousands of dedicated federal dollars to your local economy through take-up of tax credits by the clients you serve.

I know what you’re thinking, “Me? Do people’s taxes? Definitely not.” Even if you have some burning interest to figure out the forms, technical jargon, and other complexities of the U.S. tax code or just want to save money doing your own taxes, why would you choose to spend time completing returns from Feb. 1 – April 15 unless you’re getting (well) paid for it?

Funny as it may seem, doing taxes is pretty easy and even enjoyable, especially when you help people who are truly in need and may have been preyed upon in the past by high cost paid preparers. Volunteer tax preparers get to directly touch the lives of their neighbors, providing free assistance to help individuals and families make use of the tax benefits (like the refundable Earned Income Tax Credit) that they deserve.

When you hear about the things predatory preparers in Michigan will do (like charge upwards of 800% interest on a Refund Anticipation Loan) and find out how simple it is to help someone get the refund they deserve (by claiming tax credits like the EITC, home heating credit and the homestead property tax credit), the opportunity to serve as a volunteer preparer resonates as a truly impactful means of producing tangible benefits for your community.

Becoming a volunteer preparer builds skills you can use for the rest of your life (you will never have to pay someone to do your taxes again!) and looks great on a resume. You also get a chance to meet really cool people who, like you, want to be active and contributing members of their community. My first year as a tax preparer, I couldn’t believe how much fun the tax site became once I got to know the other preparers and experienced the camaraderie you find in a group of diverse people all coming together for a real purpose.

Check out the Michigan Earned Income Credit Coalition (MEIC) website to learn more about becoming a VITA volunteer preparer: www.michiganeic.org/. You can also call or email me to find out more.

Want to get started? To become a preparer, you must become IRS certified through an online or classroom training process. To check out the online training modules from the IRS go to: http://www.irs.gov/app/vita/. Contact your local VITA group to learn more about classroom training opportunities. You can find information on your local VITA program here.

This coming tax season, I hope you will join me and the hundreds of other volunteers across Michigan who provide such a valuable resource to their communities as volunteer tax preparers!

Megan Kursik, CEDAM, kursik@cedam.info; 517-485-3588 x1942

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Publicizing News and the New CEDAM Media List

Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011

This first part of this post introduces the CEDAM media list and explains how to use it effectively. The second part covers basics about publicizing your organization’s news.

Using the CEDAM Media List

Download the media list:
The new CEDAM media list is available for CEDAM members to download at members.cedam.info: Get Media List and Media Tools. For help logging in, please click here. The media list is an Excel spreadsheet. If you do not have Excel, download Excel Viewer for free to view the media list.

About the media list:
In addition to general contact information such as email, phone and mail addresses, the CEDAM media list also notes the coverage areas for each media outlet as well as website, Facebook and Twitter information. Note that both news tips and press releases can be submitted to any contact with “news tips” in the job title.

At the bottom of the Excel sheet there are two tabs. One tab is for “general” news about anything. The other tab is for policy and government news. If you are sending news related to policy or government, contact the people from the Policy-Govt tab in addition to those in the General tab.

Submit statewide or national news:
If your news is either relevant to Michigan as a whole or is national news, email/contact everyone on the general media list. If your Michigan or national topic is also related to policy or government, add the contacts from the Policy-Govt tab.

Submit local news:
You can find what media covers your community by pressing CTRL+F (command+F on MAC) and searching for the name of your county, the name of your city or “Michigan” (to find places with Michigan, Northern Michigan or Mid-Michigan listed in their coverage area).

Submit policy or government related news:
Contact everyone in the General tab and everyone in the Policy-Govt tab.

Why is : ) next to a company name?
This means we know the contact or have worked with them recently.

FAQ

What is a media list?
A media list is a database of media contacts. Media lists are an excellent way to send news, press releases, event information, job postings and volunteer opportunities to news and media outlets. One of the benefits of CEDAM membership is access to the CEDAM statewide media list, which will give you contact information and email addresses for state and local media.

To whom do I send my news?
Generally, you send news to an editor or producer. If you know which reporter covers the topic you are promoting, you may also send news to them. Finally, most media outlets have a general email for news tips and press releases. Send your news to all of the above if possible, because you never know who will pick up your story!

How do I write a press/news release?
The following is a quick list of items every press release should have. For a detailed walkthrough, please see this post.

  • Your organization’s logo or name
  • Contact information and cell phone number for the person the media should go to for more information
  • A headline/hook
  • The date and usually the originating city of the press release
  • Main text, with most important information first
  • A quote from the lead individual or expert in the story
  • ### or -30- at the end of the release
  • A short statement about your organization and what it does
  • Proofreading by someone else

Here is an example of a CEDAM press release (PDF).
Here is an example of a Center for Community Progress press release (PDF).

What is a media advisory?
A media advisory is an invitation to the media to a press conference or event you are hosting that you want them to attend and cover. A media advisory is not the same as a press release. A press release provides all the information the media needs to write a complete article. A media advisory, on the other hand, only gives a “teaser” of what will be at the press conference: enough to get the media interested, but not enough to write a full story without attending.

What is a news tip?
If you do not have time to create a formal press release, you can still send your story to the media via a news tip. A news tip is a quick summary or “news pitch” the media can follow up on if they are interested. Remember to include your contact information.

Can I use social media to send news to the media?
Yes! You can post news directly on the media outlet’s Facebook page, tag the media in a Facebook post or tweet news to them on Twitter. Of course, it is a very good idea to follow up your social media messaging with an actual email, phone call or fax to that media outlet.

What are some other ways to publicize my organization’s news?

  • Consider writing an Op-Ed. Click here for a great post on how to do that as a nonprofit.
  • Ask an individual or organization that has a blog if you can write a guest post about your news, event, story or experience.
  • Post your news on social media.
  • Keep a collection of your news and press releases somewhere on your website.

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How to Write a Good Press Release

Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011

[This post is adapted from materials provided by Kathi Landon at SuccessPoint Marketing, Inc. It is available to CEDAM members, along with the new media list, at members.cedam.info]

A press release, news release, or press statement is a written communication directed at members of the news media for the purpose of announcing something claimed as having news value. For any organization that has a message or mission, a press release is one of the most effective and vital means of communication. But remember: it becomes news only when an editor, producer or reporter decides it’s news!

So what makes something newsworthy? Editors, producers and reporters may consider a story newsworthy if it:

Affects or interests their readers Is new
Has flexible timeliness Is uplifting or inspirational
Shows how national or state issues
are affecting a local community		 Is unusual or unique

Every organization formats their press release a little bit different, so rather than explain how to set up a press release, we will review techniques to write a good one. For press release formatting please look at the samples below. CEDAM members can use the Press Release Template in the Media and Press Toolkit on the members section of the website.

Here is an example of a CEDAM press release (PDF).
Here is an example of a Center for Community Progress press release (PDF).

Technique #1: The Inverted Pyramid
This is a metaphor used to illustrate how information should be presented within the text. The broad base at the top represents the most substantial, interesting and important information. The tapered lower portion represents other information that follows in order of diminishing importance. This format is valued because the reader can leave the story at any point and understand it. It also allows news editors to easily remove less important information when articles need to fit a fixed size.

Technique #2: The Anecdotal Lead
Instead of introducing the text with the central facts, this technique opens the text with an eye-catching story to interest readers. This technique works well in a press release when the headline clearly indicates what the story will be about. For instance, “Foreclosure Prevention Helps Lansing Family Keep their Home” could open with a story paragraph about the family and then follow up with facts about foreclosure prevention.

How to Get the Press on Your Side
Establish a personal relationship with key media people in your area. When you are sending something you consider especially important, call your contacts to make sure they got your press release. Always make a follow up call when you send a media advisory about a press conference or event you are hosting that you want the media to attend.

  • Do not put out a press release if it does not contain information the media considers newsworthy! This is the quickest way to ruin your credibility with the media and have your future releases disregarded.
  • On a phone call, don’t pitch your story right away. Start by saying something like “Hi, my name is Tamika Smith and I have a story suggestion you might find interesting. Is this a good time for you?” If the reply is “yes,” pitch your story. If it is “no,” you might reply “When would be a good time to call you back?” Your courtesy will be appreciated by the journalist.
  • Pitch to the voice mail. Keep your pitch very short and end with your phone number. If you do not hear back, try again until you get the actual person.
  • Avoid reading a script. You probably know what it sounds like to be called by a telemarketer who does this. Practice your pitch so that it seems natural and spontaneous.
  • Pitch a story, not an advertisement. The media wants to give their audience interesting stories. Make your pitch newsy, exciting and relevant.
  • Although it is always good to develop a rapport with your local press, you need to walk a fine line between building and maintaining a relationship with an editor/reporter and being a pest.

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Want Engaged Citizens? Try Hosting “Your Community 101”

Monday, June 27th, 2011

[This post is from Katie Fritz, CEDAM's Policy and Program Manager.]

Do you know how your community manages wastewater? Or how the local planning commission works? Do your neighbors know too?

The more you know about your city, the more likely you are to help improve it. But it can be hard to get started. The city of Decatur, GA has figured out how to involve residents in local government operations and community activities.  Since 2000, the city has planned and hosted “Decatur 101” courses, covering topics from police to volunteering. Hundreds of residents have completed the program, going on to run for office, volunteer for boards and commissions, start neighborhood associations and more. “We now know the city listens as well as how to make our voices heard,” said one participant on a feedback form. Another opinion: “It makes it a lot easier to write that tax check.”

If you want to get your community’s residents more involved, try creating a fun course about the local government or neighborhood. For inspiration and tips, check out the class outline from Decatur 101, below. Does your city already do something like this? Let us know in the comments!

***content below is from the Decatur 101 webpage***

Decatur 101 logoClass Outline
Each class consists of five two-hour evening sessions focusing on specific areas of government. The sessions are conducted in various city buildings, including the police station, public works building, city hall, and the recreation center. Classes are limited to 40 participants.

Smart Growth Walking Tour (Optional)

Session 1
Held at the Police Station, begins with a welcome from the mayor. Topics include history of the city, form of government, role of the city manager, strategic plan and economic development. Also includes a tour of the Police Station and a quick overview of that department.

Session 2
Held at the Public Works building, includes overview of sanitation and facilities maintenance, codes, inspections and permits, and engineering. Also includes a tour of the Public Works facility and vehicles.

Session 3
Held at City Hall and includes a tour of the City Hall. Participants learn about the Administrative Services department including budget, taxes, millage rate, technology, accounting & revenue. Also includes an overview of Emergency Management and updates on current initiatives such as Bond Project updates.

Session 4
Held at City Hall. Participants learn about the various boards and commissions and participate in a mock Planning Commission Meeting.  Also includes information about the Community Transportation Plan.

Session 5
Held at the Decatur Recreation Center and includes a tour of the facility and a brief overview of the Active Living and Children & Youth Services Divisions. City volunteer organizations make brief presentations and participants have a Q&A session with the mayor and commissioners. The mayor and commissioners conduct a graduation ceremony, and participants receive a certificate and a commemorative T-shirt. Participants also fill out evaluation forms that provide us with ideas and suggestions for improving the Decatur 101 program.

 

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