Community members and business leaders convened at The Gathering Spot August 18th for the Transform Westside Summit. The program began with a moving devotion from Shade’ Yvonne Jones, CEO of Green is Lyfe and proud chair of NPU-L and liaison for English Avenue and Vine City. Jones spoke about the importance of developing unity between organizations and people of the community. “You cannot have a Beloved Community without unity… Where there is unity, there is strength and power, that enables us to do the work before us”, said Jones as she delivered a powerful message.

Following the devotion, Danny Shoy Jr., Managing Director for Youth Development and Atlanta’s Westside at The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, and WFF Board Member was joined on stage by Caroline Huston, Director of Strategic Communications for the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation for an insightful conversation around the foundation’s evolving strategy for their work on the Westside.

Key Moments from the Fireside Chat

1. “The neighborhood has a rich history and legacy that we believe should continue.”
As the Westside continues to change the Blank Foundation wants to work to make sure legacy residents aren’t displaced from a community that has been their home for decades.

2. “Legacy Residents should benefit from the positive changes that are happening in the community.”
The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation’s total Westside commitment over the past decade exceeds $55 million dollars and will increase with the support of philanthropic funders, community members and organizations neighboring the community who are invested in the growth of the Westside.

3. “We learned the importance of Listening.”
As The Blank Foundation developed its strategy to support the revitalization of the Westside, it uncovered how necessary it is to listen to residents and remember to be thoughtful and focused on the mission at hand.

4. “Communities are really defined by their people.”
Residents living in communities that have endured economic hardship and blight is not the vision for Westside residents, our community members want their
community to thrive.

Miss the event? Watch the full Transform Westside Summit on YouTube.

Earlier this month Westside Future Fund celebrated closings for two more homeowners through our signature affordable housing program Home on the Westside.

Kristen Folsom has purchased a home in English Avenue. She works in public health and is a Spelman College alumna.

Tiffany Tyuse is the second single-family home sale for WFF’s Home on the Westside in Vine City, and works in county government.

WFF created HOTW as part of our commitment to community retention and serves residents with key “live, work, and learn” connections to the Westside. WFF’s HOTW program provides key services for legacy and future residents of the Historic Westside, specifically in the English Avenue, Vine City, Ashview Heights, Atlanta University Center and Just Us neighborhoods. Those services include:

• Homeownership
• Rental Housing
• Anti-Displacement Tax Fund for Legacy Homeowners

Learn more about our signature program Home on the Westside here. Stay tuned to our YouTube channel  and our Stories of Impact blog to hear more from the residents we serve.

July was a busy month for the WFF Volunteer Corps! Dozens of volunteers rallied together in our collective effort to revitalize our community and clean up entire blocks within English Avenue. We welcomed groups from Chick-fil-A and FirstKey Homes, as well as community members actively engaged in the transformation of the historic Westside. 

Over a dozen volunteers from FirstKey Homes cleaned up multiple lots that had been blighted and abandoned along Sunset Avenue, just blocks from the former home of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The group, formed primarily of interns from the Marietta-based company, filled two dumpsters worth of overgrowth, debris and garbage. Cameron, managing intern for the project, first learned about the Westside Future Fund while looking for a volunteer opportunity for herself and her colleagues and was quickly drawn to the organization’s mission.

“When I heard Westside Future Fund was providing affordable housing, I was immediately interested,” said Cameron. “I did a little research and saw the history of the community, and read about its needs, then I made sure that we came out to help out in any way we could.”

A familiar face joined the monthly Community Clean-Up early in the month. Sidy, who has attended three straight months of clean-up events, was happy to be back with the WFF Volunteer Corps – and let them know that he’s here to stay.

“It’s a great opportunity to get out and get active while doing something meaningful that helps others,” said Sidy. “I really enjoy being here, and plan to keep coming back.”

A huge crew, made up of several dozen volunteers, from Chick-fil-A cleaned and cleared blocks of blighted lots surrounding WFF’s 400 Paines Avenue Home on the Westside multi-family development, which is scheduled to complete later this year.

Westside Future Fund hosts volunteer events throughout the Historic Westside community each month. To explore how you can make a difference and find out about upcoming opportunities, we invite you to visit www.westsidefuturefund.org/volunteer. Together, we can transform the historic Westside into a community that Dr. King would be proud to call home.

This month Westside Future Fund (WFF) became HUD-approved. As a nonprofit agency approved by HUD, WFF can continue its mission of building a mixed-income community, which ensures the inclusion of low-to-moderate-income families with key financing for home purchases. With this designation, WFF can now:

• Purchase HUD-owned properties
• Access FHA Mortgage financing
• Direct fund down payment assistance on FHA-insured mortgages

“Having this approval from HUD is a key tool to help us continue to provide deeply affordable quality housing to legacy and future residents on the Historic Westside,” said Rachel Carey, WFF’s Chief Real Estate Officer.

Established in 1965 as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s administration, the Department of Housing and Urban Development was created to focus on urban housing issues. Today HUD’s mission is “to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all.”

WFF aligns with this mission through its signature program Home on the Westside (HOTW), which helps create a community Dr. King would be proud to call home. HOTW’s community retention guidelines prioritize people with key “live, work, learn” connections to the Historic Westside to live in WFF-owned properties. HOTW services include:

• Anti-Displacement tax fund for legacy homeowners
• Rental housing
• Homeownership

“Our goal is to always meet people where they are in their journey,” said Tameka Askew, manager for HOTW. “Having this approval from HUD for the historic Westside is a game changer for the residents we work with who have a dream of achieving home ownership.”

Learn more about our Home on the Westside program here.

Find out how you can support the mission of Westside Future Fund.

Community members and business leaders convened at The Gathering Spot July 21 for the Transform Westside Summit. 

The program began with a moving devotion from Reverend Winston Taylor, legacy Westside resident local preacher, and founder of The Beloved Community Inc. Taylor also owns the historic St. Mark AME Church, which he plans to make a community gathering spot for the Historic Westside.  Taylor’s message was centered on miracles. “In order to do this impossible work that we’re doing that is considered to be building Jerusalem, you’re going to have to believe in miracles,” said Taylor at the start of his message.

Following the devotion, T. Dallas Smith, T. Dallas Smith & Company Founder and CEO, and WFF Board Chair-Elect, joined John Ahmann, Westside Future Fund President & CEO, for a powerful and candid fireside chat about his early remembrances growing up on the Westside,, and his passion for seeing his childhood neighborhood restored to a thriving, mixed-income community.

Key Moments from the Fireside Chat

“It [the neighborhood] was paradise. People took care of one another.” 

Smith grew up in Hunter Hills, off of Simpson Road on Child’s Drive. It is now known as Joseph E. Boone. His mother watched children in his childhood home and his father, a former paratrooper in the Air Force’s 82nd Airborn division, worked at Lockheed Martin and drove a taxi for Simpson Road Cab Company. He attended EC Clement Elementary School and Turner High School before moving to College Park.

“…the first razor blade I had to swallow.”

At age 14, Smith’s family moved to College Park, where they were the first Black family on their street. The same day they moved in, his neighbors across the street made a point of posting their for sale sign. He recalls an incident where three white boys pulled up next to him as he rode his bike. They threw foul language, rocks and cans at him and told him to “get out of my neighborhood.” He described that event as “the first razor blade I had to swallow.” 

“…the okey-doke.”

In hindsight, Smith described his parents’ rationale for moving as “the okey-doke.” They thought everything would be better because they were moving to a white neighborhood. They believed Dr. King’s dream was integration and the grass was going to be greener on the other side. In reality, they moved to a neighborhood that didn’t want them in the first place.

“I knew one thing: I wasn’t going to get the benefit of the doubt.”

His book “In the Black, Changing the Dominant Narrative in the Commercial Real Estate Industry” features a poem he wrote in May 1996, entitled “Tears of Black Folk.” This moving poem was written when he worked at Cushman Wakefield, a self-proclaimed very tough time in his life, as he was the firm’s first Black broker. He recalls having to work harder than all the other brokers while feeling—very clearly—that he wasn’t supposed to be there. 

“It’s like God was pushing me back to this old neighborhood. I could not shake it.”

The two men met years ago at a networking event. Both were looking for homes and Ahmann mentioned that he was interested in purchasing a home on Sunset in the Historic Westside. Smith was struck by this response both because it was in his old neighborhood but also because Ahmann is a white man. This conversation, along with others he met who mentioned returning to live on the Westside, inspired Smith. He purchased T. M. Alexander’s house on Sunset two years ago. He plans to redevelop it and move back into the neighborhood.

“Giving the benefit of the doubt is such a treasure.”

During an emotional moment in the conversation, Smith stressed the importance of giving people the benefit of the doubt, likening it to giving someone fresh water. He boldly proclaimed that the Historic Westside is not less than; it is better than because it has survived despite the things that have happened to it..

“Until we have people who look like me…who can afford to live anywhere they want…come back to the neighborhood, we’re going to continue to have this issue. Give us the benefit of the doubt. This is a neighborhood that will save this city—because they did it before.”

Audience Questions

• How does a young person find a house in Atlanta? It’s so hard to find anything.
  • Number one, get connected to an Empire Board of Realtors broker. Number two, come to Westside Future Fund. Maybe you don’t know this, but there are some down payment assistance programs giving up to $60,000 in assistance. These opportunities are available now. Another thing we’re working on is trying to get the message out for these resources within WFF.
• People have different views of what the issue is. Some think it’s housing; others say preservation. What is the vision we can all come together to restore and revitalize the whole MLK quarter?
  • I think it’s the old adage—The Five Blind Men—who were all touching an elephant. The reality of it is we’re all talking about the same elephant and if we take care of the pieces we feel drawn to, they will all work together.

Miss the event? Watch the full Transform Westside Summit on YouTube. 

A year since the inaugural Ride for the Westside, the Atlanta housing market continues to outpace the economic mobility of low-wage, working-class families. Recognizing a continued need for philanthropic support, the second annual Ride for the Westside fundraiser returns to support Quest Community Development Corporation’s (Quest CDC) and Westside Future Fund’s (WFF) community-oriented affordable housing efforts, while also celebrating the rich, cultural history of the Historic Westside.

Quest CDC develops affordable and supportive housing for formerly homeless and extremely low-income residents in metro Atlanta. Additionally, the organization provides key support services including comprehensive case management, financial management, and other resources for individuals and families affected by behavioral health, addictions, and physical disabilities.

“Quest is one of the few housing developers in Georgia intentionally focused on housing residents at the lowest income levels, and those who are most vulnerable, to advance social equity and economic inclusion,” said Leonard L. Adams, Jr., President & CEO of Quest CDC. “We are creating communities that change lives, believing purposeful living begins when you have a place to call home.”

WFF helps revitalize the Historic Westside into a community Dr. King would be proud to call home by championing four impact strategies: community health and wellness, safety and security, cradle-to-career education, and mixed-income communities. Its signature program, Home on the Westside, provides the opportunity for homeownership for people with key live, work, and learn connections to the Westside. WFF serves residents in the Vine City, English Avenue, Ashview Heights, Atlanta University Center, and Just Us neighborhoods.

“We know that healthy neighborhoods are a key social determinant for families including their health and well-being, economic opportunity, and access to quality education,” said John Ahmann, President, and CEO of WFF. “Our signature program Home on the Westside is a key part of our mission to advance a compassionate approach to neighborhood revitalization. Philanthropic support is key to helping us continue to develop deeply affordable, quality housing for current and future residents of the Historic Westside.”

Quest CDC and WFF are honored to announce actress, singer, and Real Housewives of Atlanta star Drew Sidora as this year’s emcee for Ride for the Westside. Through her non-profit DREAMAKERS, Sidora motivates young women from diverse backgrounds to be empowered as leaders in their schools, churches, communities, and the world.

“I’ve always been a passionate Dreamer hoping to Entertain and Inspire!” said Sidora. “I’m excited to join this year’s Ride for the Westside supporting a great cause.”

Ride for the Westside will take place on Saturday, September 30 from 8:00 am to noon with festivities and fun for all ages beginning and ending at the WFF Campus at 970 Jefferson Street, NW Atlanta.  The event will include an 11-mile bike loop, a 5K run, which is also a 2024 Peachtree Road Race qualifier, and a Heritage Walk highlighting historic landmarks, community gathering spots, and local businesses. For more information, visit westsidefuturefund.org/ride4westside.

Quest CDC and WFF are grateful to our sponsors for this year’s Ride for the Westside, including Chick-fil-A, The Home Depot Foundation, The Coca-Cola Company, Georgia Power Foundation, Schneider, WABE, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), PNC, NCR, Aaron’s, Comcast, Brock Built, Dematic, Top Floor Insurance, TMPAV, Wharton Law, L.C., FirstKey Homes, General Parts Company, APD Urban Planning + Management, Marsh, and Lucie Content.

 

 

 

 

 

The Historic Westside, and its neighborhoods including English Avenue, Vine City, Ashview Heights, Atlanta University Center and Just Us are part of our nation’s Civil Rights history and full of rich culture.

During our bi-monthly community tour, Westside Future Fund (WFF) invites the community to learn more about the stories, and history, behind the landmarks that shaped the Historic Westside’s identity.

A Journey Begins

The tour begins at WFF’s office at 970 Jefferson Street in English Avenue. Each tour begins by sharing the legacy of the Historic Westside and how, through decades of change, the neighborhoods that make up this community have experienced economic decline and depopulation. It also shares the mission and vision of WFF to advance a compassionate approach to neighborhood revitalization to build a community Dr. King would be proud to call home.  

Discovering Historic Westside

As the bus winds through the Historic Westside, each stop along the route offers a glimpse into the past, present, and future of the community, and the efforts led by WFF, with philanthropic support, and other community stakeholders and partners to bring key resources to residents. 

The bus tour unfolds like a tapestry of stories, highlighting the educational institutions that have nurtured generations of leaders including Clark Atlanta University, Spelman College, Morris Brown College, and Morehouse College, Morehouse School of Medicine and the Interdenominational Theological Center. 

Moving through the community, the tour passes by Rodney Cook Park, a hub of community activity, which showcases the dedication of individuals who have come together to create a safe and vibrant space. Kathryn Johnston Memorial Park pays homage to a beloved resident whose tragic passing brought about a collective resolve to foster unity and harmony.

The tour also takes participants to former residences of key civic leaders in Atlanta’s history including the Antonio Herndon Home, once belonging to a former slave turned founder of Atlanta Life Insurance and Atlanta’s first Black millionaire. Further along, the tour reaches the home of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a place of profound historical significance that continues to inspire generations.

The journey isn’t complete without paying tribute to influential figures who have shaped Atlanta’s narrative. The home of the Jackson family, including the late Atlanta Mayor Maynard Jackson Jr., reflects their commitment to public service and their lasting impact on the city.

Witnessing Transformation

The bus tour also showcases the tangible results of WFF’s revitalization efforts. Participants witness the transformation of blighted, abandoned homes into quality, affordable housing. These newly built homes, and multifamily properties, parks, and schools including the Hollis Innovation Academy stand as a testament to WFF’s commitment to creating sustainable communities that provide key resources and amenities to residents and foster hope about the future. Additional landmarks such as St. Mark’s United Methodist Church, Historic Westside Gardens, Phillis Wheatley YWCA, and the Quest Community Development office are also included.Each site bears witness to the spirit of collaboration and determination of WFF and many other philanthropic and community partners.  

WFF’s monthly community tour is an immersive experience for participants that serves as a reminder that the heart of a community beats strongest when its members come together, united by a common vision of progress, equality, and hope.

Don’t Miss Next Month’s Tour!

Register today to join the Westside Future Fund team at their next Community Tour on August 12, 2023: https://www.westsidefuturefund.org/wfftours/. 

The WFF Volunteer Corps warmly welcomed a mix of familiar and fresh faces to our volunteer opportunities this June. It was a month filled with enthusiasm and dedication from individuals like Michael, Sidy, and Justin, who shared their experiences and motivations for actively participating in our organization’s initiatives.

Michael’s journey with WFF began when he discovered the organization online and decided to attend the Transform Westside Summit. This event proved to be an eye-opener for him, as he learned about the ongoing volunteer opportunities available in the community. The experience left an indelible mark on Michael, inspiring him to join our monthly Community Clean-Up. Reflecting on the pressing needs of the Atlanta community after living there for 37 years, Michael expressed his realization that action speaks louder than words.

“I drive by areas like this that need attention almost every day,” said Michael. “I think about it over and over again, about what needs to be done, and guess what the solution is: hands on. We can talk about it, think about it, but in the end, when it’s time for the rubber to meet the road, it’s time to take action.”

The monthly Community Clean-Up event offers volunteers a tangible opportunity to contribute to the revitalization of the Historic Westside neighborhoods. Participants actively clear trash, manage overgrowth in public spaces, sidewalks, and vacant properties. Sidy, who had been inspired by his first volunteering experience with his AT&T colleagues, eagerly joined the Community Clean-Up crew for the second time in June. Reflecting on his previous encounter, Sidy expressed his admiration for the organization’s dedication to making a tangible difference. 

“When I was here at the last volunteer event, I saw how hard the organization is working to physically make a difference in this community,” said Sidy. “I felt as though they need all of the help they can get, so I promised to come back any time they have a public volunteer event.”

Another familiar face at the Community Clean-Up was Justin Mah, a dedicated veteran member of the WFF Volunteer Corps. Justin has invested countless hours supporting our organization’s mission and remains committed to the cause. Justin’s love for the Westside, combined with his deep sense of community, led him to actively engage with the organization.

“Being a resident here, getting involved with my community and the Westside Future Fund, I feel like at least once a month joining these events is not a hard commitment,” said Justin. “The goal is that one day we won’t have to be out here doing these clean ups, but as long as we do, I’ll be out here.”

Westside Future Fund consistently hosts volunteer events throughout the Historic Westside community on a monthly basis. To explore how you can make a difference and find out about upcoming opportunities, we invite you to visit www.westsidefuturefund.org/volunteer. Together, we can create a brighter future for the Historic Westside neighborhoods.

Transform Westside Summit began in 2014 as the brainchild of Chick-fil-A president Dan Cathy. Created to bridge the gap between Westside residents and organizations with a true passion and desire to see the Westside grow, the audience includes longtime neighborhood residents, community and faith leaders, heads of non-profits and corporate executives. These diverse stakeholders come together to share success stories and discuss challenges that currently affect our Westside neighborhoods.

In recognition of the event’s ninth anniversary, new and long-time attendees were given the opportunity to reflect on their experience and the tremendous impact the Summit has made in transforming the Westside. Tameka Askew, Westside Future Fund’s Home on the Westside manager, led the blessing. 

John Ahmann, president and CEO, Westside Future Fund; Ebony Ford, director of Community Building and Engagement, Quest CDC; and Benjamin Earley, fourth generation Westside resident and senior correspondent, Redclay-Hill, led the discussion. Earley, who has co-hosted the Summit since January 2020, announced this would be his last as a regular co-host. He plans to pursue a different calling, but will attend future Summits as a member of the audience.

Panelist Reflections

Community Building

• The most critical part of the work we do is bringing people with different life experiences together. The Summit has provided that safe space to build community and get to know one another. For me, the Summits have been an enormous opportunity to meet and engage with so many people that I never would have had the opportunity to otherwise.” — John Ahmann

Transformational

• They call it the Transform Westside Summit. In order to transform the Westside, you have to transform each individual. This Summit has transformed my life. — Ebony Ford

Level of Influence

• One thing I’ve learned from interviewing people and speaking to different leaders is that it matters who is in position to make a change. I realize that I am in a position of a certain level of influence I can have in my community. That’s the added benefit, but it’s a very important benefit. — Benjamin Earley

Audience Reflections

Transformative Authority

• When the power and authority meet the poor and underclass, and we have dialogue and have a public sphere where we can speak, that can be very altering. Westside Future Fund has altered the thinking of many because it has worked towards transformative authority. They gave us hope that our voices would be heard. — Reverend Leroy Wright, pastor, First Thessalonian Missionary Baptist Church

Success on the Westside

• To be successful, you’ve got to develop a network, a group of people we can build trust in. A group to get through the hard times with. On the Westside, we were identified by what we didn’t have, how bad it was, how much we were left out. What’s happened over the last nine years is that we’ve turned that upside down. We have great things on the Westside. We have great assets in this community. Those assets are each other. We identify now as a place of power, a place we take pride in. A place where we trust each other. I don’t think we would have done that had we not gathered together. — Bill Bolling, founder, Atlanta Community Food Bank

Getting to Know Each Other

• The self introduction is what makes this room what it is because that’s how we get to know each other and that’s how we are all on an even plane. I have described this room as the best of Atlanta. This is where all of Atlanta can come together, with respect. Where everyone gets to know one another. There are a lot of organizations in this town that could learn a lot about how we do things here at the Transform Westside Summit. — Maria Saporta, SaportaReport

Making a Difference

• I wear a pin sometimes that says “Anybody can make a difference. Everyone should try.” There are those who are determined to make a difference and there are those who are destined to make a difference. I see that in this room. — Tillman Ward, long-time Westside resident

 

Miss the event? Watch the full Transform Westside Summit on YouTube. 

Earlier this month Colette Haywood, a legacy Vine City resident, officially closed on her home on Foundry Street. Haywood is the first legacy resident of Vine City to purchase a home through Westside Future Fund’s (WFF) Home on the Westside program. She is also the first single family home sale for WFF in the Vine City neighborhood; WFF’s previous home sales have been in the English Avenue neighborhood. Haywood’s home was built by Atlanta Habitat for Humanity through their Community Builders program.

WFF created HOTW as part of our commitment to community retention and serves residents with key “live, work, and learn” connections to the Westside. WFF’s HOTW program provides key services for legacy and future residents of the Historic Westside, specifically in the English Avenue, Vine City, Ashview Heights, Atlanta University Center and Just Us neighborhoods. Those services include:

• Homeownership
• Rental Housing
• Anti-Displacement Tax Fund for Legacy Homeowners

Learn more about our signature program Home on the Westside here. Stay tuned to our YouTube channel for more updates on Colette’s story and our Stories of Impact blog to hear more from the residents we serve.