The National Disability Finance Coalition (NDFC), which promotes the work of community development financial institutions serving communities with disabilities, recently established the NDFC Trailblazer Award to recognize, reward, and celebrate a community development financial institution making a meaningful contribution to expanding accessibility. The first recipient is the Genesis Community Loan Fund, a longtime Mercy Partnership Fund investee.
Since 1992, Genesis has worked throughout Maine and in New Hampshire to connect communities with the capital and expertise they need to create affordable housing and other essential community resources, including food pantries and childcare and healthcare facilities. Genesis makes flexible loans, delivers expert project guidance, and promotes policy solutions and systemic change to help people who include workers, families, seniors, and recent immigrants overcome barriers to opportunity and prosperity. Thirty percent of Genesis’ loans in the last three years have supported more than 800 people with disabilities.
Coastal Kids Preschool (pictured above) and Children’s Odyssey Preschool are inclusive early learning programs where children with special needs and of varied developmental levels learn alongside their more typically developing peers. Loans from Genesis helped sustain both schools, which have completely reopened after COVID-19 to continue serving their community.
Two MPF investees received honorable mentions from NDFC: Solar and Energy Loan Fund (SELF), for financing for home improvements for people with disabilities; and Justine PETERSEN, for providing credit-builder loans to people with disabilities. These organizations are just a few of the more than 60 mission-driven organizations in Mercy Partnership Fund’s global community investing portfolio.