1990s: HOUSING & CHILDREN CONTINUE AS PRIORITY, VOLUNTEERS & FUNDRAISERS MAKE WORK POSSIBLE
In 1990,
EFAA saw a 25% increase from the previous year in requests for help from local families. This was in part due to a rapid rise in housing costs. As needs increased significantly, so did volunteer participation, both in numbers and in the importance of the roles they filled.
A 1992
internal evaluation of EFAA’s housing program showed a critical need for additional housing in Boulder County for homeless families. Throughout the ‘90s EFAA responded in three ways. First, by raising the funds to buy additional units in Longmont, an area of great need. Second, by forming a partnership with a volunteer housing program in Boulder called Second Step to provide families access to mobile homes for transitional housing. Third, by forming a partnership with the Housing Authority of the City of Boulder to provide additional transitional housing and gain funding for homelessness prevention.
1992,
“Celebration”, EFAA’s first annual fundraising gala, was held at Career Track in 1992 and raised $15,000 to help fund expanding programs like housing.
By 1995,
after 15 years of providing housing to families, EFAA had housed more than 9,000 people at ECHO House in Boulder and Atwood in Longmont. EFAA launched the Children’s Program to help mitigate the destructive effects of homelessness on children.
