Category Archives: Restorative Action

Capital Campaign, Outreach, Restorative Action

CPF Proposal 2: Own It! Building Black Wealth Educational Materials

St. Dunstan’s Community Project Fund: Housing Grants

In early 2024, St. Dunstan’s will be giving away $70,000 in grants to help address the housing crisis in Dane County and beyond. These funds were set aside to serve those outside our parish, during our capital campaign for a major renovation in 2018-2019. Read more about this process in last week’s special Enews mailing about it.

We have received four grant applications for these funds, and we’ll be sharing about the projects and organizations over the weeks ahead. In mid-January we will begin a parish feedback project where members and friends of St. Dunstan’s can share their thoughts about where you would most like to see our funding go. Please read, reflect, and take notes!

Second Application: Education for Home Ownership 

Organization: Own It: Building Black Wealth

Project title: Own It: Building Black Wealth Education Program Expansion

Own It: Building Black Wealth is a collaboration between Madison-area real estate, banking, and financial professionals to break down systemic barriers to homeownership for Madison’s Black and brown communities.

In Madison, about 15% of Black families own their home, compared to .30% of Hispanic families and over 50% of white families in Madison own their home. The national average for homeownership for Black families is about 45%.

Homeownership rates are a major reason for the large disparity in family wealth between white and Black families, and access to money is one of the biggest barriers to homeownership. This feedback loop prevents families of color from building generational wealth.

To learn a little more about home ownership and the racial wealth gap, here is some information from the US Treasury Department, and an article from the American Civil Liberties Union. There’s lots more to learn if you are interested!

Click on the picture below to watch a 2-minute video about the Own It! program. And read some Own It! success stories here!

The Own It: Building Black Wealth Education Program has two key components:

  1. Education:  Own It’s Wealth Building and Homeownership courses improve financial literacy and understanding of homeownership as it relates to building wealth. Their website states, “We are able to offer a personal finance course and homeownership course that is rooted in social justice and includes: understanding credit, a cohort to build credit, real estate and home ownership education, plus post closing support and a network to provide continued education around refinancing, home maintenance, building equity, and more.” The program provides families with continued guidance, mentorship, and support after completion of the initial coursework.
  2. Down-Payment Grants: Upon completion of the courses, families can apply for an $18,000 grant for down payment funds (the 2024 federal gift tax limit). These funds are non-restrictive and remove a barrier to homeownership, especially given that the real estate market is competitive and having access to cash makes an offer stronger.

Much of Own It’s funding comes directly from real estate, bank, and financial professionals who believe in this initiative and give a portion of their commissions to make it possible for Black and brown families to own homes!

Since starting as a pilot project in 2021, Own It has enrolled 281 participants in its courses, awarded 14 down payment grants of $15,000 each, and made it possible for 10 families to become first time homeowners.

Currently, the beneficiaries of this program are the families and staff of One City Schools. One City is an independent charter school in Dane County. Their student population is 90% non-white, with nearly 80% of students identifying as Black or multi-racial.

What We Need Funds For:

Based on participant feedback, Own It! wants to offer self-paced, online courses (rather than in-person) for the busy families they serve.

Grant funding from St. Dunstan’s would go directly toward redesigning the curriculum for online use, and would free up volunteer time (which is already stretched thin!) while allowing us to serve more families by expanding beyond One City School families to other organizations.

We estimate the cost of this expansion, including consultant fees, online course creation, and software, to be $26,800.

You can learn more about Own It: Building Black Wealth at the following links:

Madison365.com article

CapTimes article

Capital Campaign, Outreach, Restorative Action

CPF Proposal 1: Ho-Chunk Supportive Housing

St. Dunstan’s Community Project Fund: Housing Grants

In early 2024, St. Dunstan’s will be giving away $70,000 in grants to help address the housing crisis in Dane County and beyond. These funds were set aside to serve those outside our parish, during our capital campaign for a major renovation in 2018-2019. Read more about this process in last week’s special Enews mailing about it.

We have received four grant applications for these funds, and we’ll be sharing about the projects and organizations over the weeks ahead. In mid-January we will begin a parish feedback project where members and friends of St. Dunstan’s can share their thoughts about where you would most like to see our funding go. Please read, reflect, and take notes!

First Application: Supportive Housing for Young Ho-Chunk Families 

Organization: Ho-chunk Housing and Community Development Authority (HHCDA)

Project title: HHCDA Young Family Supportive Housing Project

Who are the Ho-Chunk? 

St. Dunstan’s has been working to deepen our awareness of the history of our land for several years, starting in earnest with a Lenten series in 2021. We have learned that the land where our church stands, which was given to St. Dunstan’s, was taken from the Ho-Chunk people – the native peoples of this land – 125 years earlier by the U.S. government, though coercive treaties and forced removal. We have developed a parish land acknowledgement, have begun to pay an annual voluntary land tax, and continue to look for other restorative actions, such as helping tend the mounds at nearby Governor Nelson State Park.

As our land acknowledgement states, “The ability to gather, worship, learn, and establish our presence as a church came at a great expense of the original inhabitants of this land, the Ho-chunk people, the People of the Sacred Voice… Two hundred years ago, the land where St. Dunstan’s now stands was the outskirts of a Ho-Chunk town, presided over by Chief Kau-kish-ka-ka or White Crow. The residents were caretakers of a sacred landscape, including the fox effigy mound that remains nearby… St Dunstan’s now stands on this land, seeking a new relationship of truth-telling, honor and respect.” (Read the full working draft of St. Dunstan’s land acknowledgement here.)

At the bottom of this message we’ll include a few links to learn more about the Ho-Chunk, their culture and history.

 

The Proposal: Supportive Housing for Young Ho-Chunk Families 

Grant Request: $35,000 to assist with furnishings  

In order to provide stable, comfortable homes and skills training for these families, HHCDA requests $35,000 from St. Dunstan’s Housing Project grant program to assist with some furnishing of the apartment units, the activity room in the community space, and educational materials.

Mission of the project

The application states, “The Young Families Supportive Housing (YFSH) project embodies HHCDA’s mission “to foster a strong, healthy community of which Ho-Chunk Nation members can be proud, by providing quality, affordable housing and programs that meet social, cultural, and community needs. This mission is similar to the goals of St. Dunstan’s outreach guiding principles, particularly ‘activities and advocacy that serve those in our larger community who need food, clothing, health care, shelter, safety, justice, and love.’”

This is a new project, started in June 2023. The building is currently under construction (with help from a state grant). It should be completed in May, and families will move in in late summer 2024. The HHCDA expects to fund operations through Ho-Chunk Nation resources, state and federal grants, and ongoing fundraising.

 

Who the project will serve

HHCDA developed this program to help young Ho-Chunk Nation families who need a second chance and do not qualify for traditional housing services. The application explains, “What makes HHCDA’s YFSH unique is the population we will serve. Traditional permanent supportive housing programs like those offered in Madison provide studio apartments, whereas the YFSH will offer a mix of two and three bedroom units for families. This project will benefit ten young Ho- Chunk families by offering stable housing and supportive services. YFSH will have a housing manager and a case manager who will meet young families “where they’re at” regarding the families’ unique life challenges.The persons assisted will be enrolled Ho-Chunk members who are near homeless or homeless, with a head of household 18 years of age or older, who qualify as a family, and have completed all appropriate forms and applications. This facility will help these families by providing a safe, secure home and supportive services including culturally appropriate approaches to holistic healing and health. For example, residents will use the commercial kitchen to prepare the healthy food and healing herbs that they have grown in the community garden.”

This facility will be in Black River Falls, Wisconsin, which is a significant center for the Ho-Chunk Nation. The other applications we will consider are more local, but our grant application process was open to any project addressing housing needs in the state of Wisconsin. An HHCDA representative explained that while the Ho-Chunk population is spread across western, central and southern Wisconsin, anything that helps anyone in the tribe helps the whole tribe. In addition, the supportive housing will be open to Ho-Chunk living anywhere in the state. A family living in Madison could apply for housing once the facility is operational.

 

Why supportive housing? 

The Young Family Supportive Housing (YFSH) project will help ten young Ho-Chunk Nation (HCN) families by providing stable housing and supportive services. The application states, “It is the goal of YFSH to help these families ‘as they are,’ by removing barriers that may exclude them from traditional housing programs. Some barriers these families face may include addiction/transitioning from recovery programs, lack of childcare, transportation, and employment. The YFSH project will follow the “Housing First” model, utilized by successful permanent supportive housing projects in the Madison area…. The “Housing First” model indicates establishing trust between families and housing providers is the first step to creating lasting connections. Families who feel safe and cared for will be more likely to utilize supportive services. Some supportive services provided will include mental health and substance abuse, life-skills training, child-care assistance and parenting programs, and job skills training.”

 

More about the Ho-chunk Housing and Community Development Authority

The mission of the Ho-Chunk Housing and Community Development Agencyis to foster a strong, healthy community of which Ho-Chunk Nation members can be proud – through providing members with quality, affordable housing and programs that help meet the Ho-Chunk Nation’s social, cultural, and community needs.

At HHCDA, we serve low-income Ho-Chunk families and communities who do not live on a traditional reservation. Instead, the communities are located on trust lands over a number of counties (Dane county included) in Wisconsin.

The programs of the HHCDA include:

  • Community buildings in different areas, to help meet the Ho-Chunk Nation’s social, cultural, and community needs.
  • Down payment assistance program, inspection cost reimbursement program, and homebuyer education programming for Ho-Chunk or other Native people in their area of service to help them move into homeownership. Forgivable loans for home repairs are also available.
  • Rental assistance for low- to moderate-income Ho-Chunk living in urban areas like Chicago, Dane County, and the Twin Cities, for Ho-Chunk attending college full time, and for low-income Ho-Chunk.
  • Supportive housing for Ho-Chunk veterans: “The Ho-Chunk way of life holds veterans in high regard, and in response to those veterans’ needs, the Legislature appropriated funds for the construction and operation of a 10-unit Veterans Supportive Housing facility… serving homeless and at-risk-of homeless Ho-Chunk [and other Native] veterans,” outside Black River Falls, WI.

 

Links to Learn More about the Ho-Chunk

A couple of historical overviews that seem in line with how Ho-Chunk leaders talk about their history:

https://mymonona.com/1166/Native-Culture-and-History-in-the-Monona

https://wisconsinfirstnations.org/ho-chunk-nation/

Some facts and figures from the state Department of Public Instruction:

https://dpi.wi.gov/amind/tribalnationswi/ho-chunk

A Ho-Chunk Nation elder tells his people’s oral history:

https://pbswisconsin.org/watch/tribal-histories/wpt-documentaries-ho-chunk-history/

Capital Campaign, Current Events, Outreach, Restorative Action

Community Project Fund proposals & voting process, January 2024

Here are quick links to the four organizations/proposals! Scroll down to read about the funds we’re giving away and how we got here.  To see the complete proposals, contact Rev. Miranda or call the church office. 

Ho-Chunk Supportive Housing for Young Families

Own It! Building Black Wealth Educational Materials

WayForward Resources Housing Stability Program

The Road Home’s Heart Room Program

St. Dunstan’s Community Project Fund: Housing Grants
In 2018, as part of Saint Dunstan’s capital campaign for a major renovation (called The Open Door Project), we recognized that our parish is committed to loving our neighbors in response to Jesus’ call. In this spirit, St. Dunstan’s committed a portion of the Open Door Project funds raised to serve the wider community after the renovation had been completed. These funds – amounting to $70,000 – were intended to be used to develop a new project to address a local need, and offer our members opportunities to learn, engage, and serve.

Following long delay in implementing this project due to the Covid pandemic, in 2023 St. Dunstan’s has discerned that these Community Project Funds are to be allocated to help address the housing crisis in Dane County. We anticipate awarding 2 to 4 one-time grants, each ranging from $10,000 to $25,000.

Why housing? 
In almost any conversation about issues and challenges affecting vulnerable communities, in Dane County and nationwide, housing comes up as a core issue. We are facing a housing crisis both nationwide and in Dane County. And housing ties in with lots of other issues: poverty, academic success and employment, transit (and therefore pollution and climate), and much more. To learn more, use the link below to access some articles (additional resources welcome!).
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1aXpovWIGn6ZtjPw-iIgi9X-N4Rrkh-g5PdQZyeoXkTg/edit?usp=sharing

What happens next? 
We have received four applications from local organizations that are doing work around affordable housing, reducing homelessness, and keeping people housed. In the weeks ahead, we plan to roll out information about each of these organizations and their specific projects. Please read about these groups as information comes out, in the coming weeks!

In mid-January, we will invite members of the parish to vote on which organizations and projects they would most like to fund. The congregation’s preferences will help the Vestry decide how to allocate the funds and send out the grants. We are committed to making that decision and announcing grants on February 1.

Finally: Because of the long Covid delay, our Vestry has decided that our priority is to get these funds out into the community. But we continue to hope that the Community Project Fund will lead to new opportunities for the people of St. Dunstan’s to learn, engage, and serve. We hope that everyone will take some time in the next two months to learn more about the housing crisis – whether here in Dane County, or where you live, for those in other areas. Many of housing solutions are deep in the weeds of local politics, and it matters to simply have more people who understand what’s at stake. New ways to get involved or help out may emerge out of our shared learning.

I’m new here. What’s this all about? 

The Open Door Project was a capital campaign and renovation project to make our buildings better serve our common life and mission. The extensive renovations of our main building and the Parish Center, the building at the end of the parking lot,  increased safety, accessibility, and comfort, and gave us more usable and flexible spaces for ourselves and community groups. You can read more here.

Announcements, Creation Care, Restorative Action

Mound Care Project, January 2023

This is an invitation that we’ve received, that may interest some of us as we move into the spring and beyond. In 2022 we drafted a parish land acknowledgment. We have given Amends funds to an organization representing the Wisconsin tribes.

We’ve also been on the lookout for some restorative actions we could take, too – not just words, and not just dollars, both of which can be abstract, but ways some of us can commit our time and energy and skill to doing the things that the Native peoples of Wisconsin and beyond would like their allies to do. 

We’ve looked at lists of restorative actions from other organizations and have been preparing to develop our own – and in the meantime, we were approached and asked to consider something. 

Governor Nelson State Park is kind of our neighborhood state park. It’s up on County M; its southern end is about an 8-minute drive from right here. At that southern end of the park there are a few effigy mounds – an animal shape, called the Panther Mound, and four conical mounds. These are mounds created by the Native peoples of Wisconsin, centuries ago; they are sacred places that need and deserve care. State agencies and the Wisconsin tribes have worked together to develop some very clear best practices for the care of mounds like these. 

We are being invited to help care for these mounds. 

At the most basic level, and perhaps to begin with, that would look like working with park leadership, with some guidance from tribal representatives, to help care for the Governor Nelson mounds in a culturally appropriate way. That might be a small-to-medium group of volunteers going out for two or three workdays a year to weed whip, remove woody brush, look for animal holes, and so on. 

At the slightly more committed level: Maybe there is a cohort of us who would like to really get trained on the specifics of mound maintenance – which is different in small but important ways from how we care for our grounds here, or how you might work in your garden at home. Then we would be able to help out at park workdays by lightly supervising other community volunteers, making sure they’re abiding by those best practices. That would ease the burden on park employees and tribal representatives to keep explaining the guidelines, and could make it easier to use community volunteers without compromising the standard of care. 

At the most ambitious level: Maybe our team could become part of a sort of Friends of the Mounds network – perhaps including interested folks from the other Madison Episcopal churches and other churches and community organizations with similar commitments. That group could go out as needed to help maintain mounds located on private property – for example, on farms out in the nearby counties. We have learned that that’s where the real need is – because the parks have willing volunteers they can call on, to some extent, and have been providing some level of care for their mounds already. Some of the mounds on private property need a lot of care, and it would be great to have a team that could go out on a Saturday, with the landowner’s agreement, and just do what they can. 

We do want to stress that this can start small, and we can see what our capacity is. We believe this is an opportunity where a relatively small group of committed folks can be part of something important and worth doing. 

The next likely steps are gathering a few folks, as soon as the ground is relatively clear, to go “meet” the mounds in Governor Nelson, and probably separately, an early-spring training on mound maintenance best practices. 

If this interests you, contact Rev. Miranda or the office and we will loop you in!