Many of our customers tell us that we’ve made a difference in their lives. And some will refer their friends and family to become customers. But it’s not every day that a customer becomes a true champion for our cause. Ericka Frye is one of those going the extra mile to spread the word about NeighborWorks Home Partners.
Ericka, a Frogtown homeowner, was referred to us by another nonprofit when she was seeking help repairing her home. It was an older home that needed extensive repairs.
The process turned out to be a lot easier than she expected. She worked with Marie, our Lending Advisor, to get her loan application completed and then worked with Matt, our Construction Manager, to determine the scope of work and get bids from contractors. Ericka felt like the whole process was educational, appreciated that as homeowners they were able to choose the contractor who would do the work for them.
NeighborWorks Home Partners worked with her to provide a new roof, electrical work, siding, insulation, foundation repairs, and additional heating in some rooms. When the roof was replaced, the contractors learned that there was no decking in the original construction.
Ericka was grateful the work was done when it was. “If we’d had one more winter without repairs, the roof probably would not have held!”
After the work was complete, Ericka didn’t end her relationship. She was eager to participate in a Metropolitan Consortium of Community Developers forum, telling everyone how her house was improved. She also tells her friends and neighbors about the work we do.
“The main reason I recommend NeighborWorks is because I believe you guys give the community a break! I call it a win-win. I believe in people helping people,” said Ericka, “and this experience with NeighborWorks kind of took that to a whole other level. I want to help pick people up and share this valuable information with the community, because NeighborWorks has got us to where we are.”
Ericka encouraged her neighbors to “just do it” if they are thinking about getting work done on their home, or repairing their credit, or getting homebuyer education with NeighborWorks Home Partners, and that NeighborWorks is a safe spot.
“It’s not anything we saw ourselves doing, it was a dream of my husband, but NeighborWorks kind of made it all possible. There’s nothing more for us to do now but sit down and enjoy the home,” Ericka said. “With NeighborWorks it just worked out so nicely. We’ve come so far and now we have nothing to worry about.”
About the Authors:
Rachel Eskuri Jorgensen
I just graduated from the University of Minnesota with a degree in Environmental Policy, Political Science, and Spanish Studies. I have always wanted to do work that benefits the community, so working at NeighborWorks Home Partners is very fulfilling. In my free time I like to read, run, hang out with my pets, and go out in nature.
Amanda Welliver
Helping people find homes has been a passion of mine and I am glad to be able to do that as a member of the NeighborWorks Home Partners team. As Marketing and Communications Coordinator, I am working to build community online and offline, spread the word about the services we offer, and share the success stories of our customers. I enjoy gardening (in theory; I don’t seem to have the time to keep up with it), volunteering, singing in choirs, finding treasures and deals at thrift stores, and living the hectic life of a parent to teen children.
