When I started at CPAH at the end of 2015, we had eight staff, including me. Soon, we were down to seven staff with a temporary position. We have grown tremendously, and today we are at 24 staff, with a couple more to add this year. Much of this growth has happened over the last few years, thanks partly to new resources in the community that allow us to build new housing (the Portland Housing Bond and the Metro Housing Bond) as well as the Metro Supportive Services Levy, all of this approved by the voters. It has been an amazing opportunity; we are so glad to be building more affordable housing, providing resident services, and providing homeless services as well. We are thankful to the voters in this region and to Washington County, and we are proud of the work we are doing.
At the beginning of this year, CPAH had the opportunity to apply for capacity building funding from Washington County. I am happy to report we were successfully funded. This is an important opportunity for us, allowing us to essentially catch up with ourselves. So, for the next 12 months, we will be focusing on growing and improving our business services with a focus on our accounting activities, grant management, and housing development. We will also be improving and deepening the work we are doing in human resources, as our staff are the most important resource we have available to accomplish CPAH’s goals. Plus they are wonderful.
Warmly –
Rachael Duke, Executive Director
