Bank of the Sierra Awards $40K to Self-Help Enterprises
August 22, 2023
Nonprofit organization will use funding to provide housing, energy, and emergency services
Porterville, Calif. – Bank of the Sierra is proud to announce it donated $40,000 to Visalia-based Self-Help Enterprises (SHE) through its Sierra Grant Program. The donation was one of several grants awarded during the second quarter of 2023 to local nonprofit organizations in the Bank’s footprint. Since the program’s inception, more than $3.8 million has been awarded.
The $40,000 grant is one of the largest Bank of the Sierra has funded as part of its Sierra Grant Program. The grant will support Self-Help Enterprises’ initiatives, including affordable housing, homeownership, housing rehabilitation, sustainable energy, and emergency services including water access. More details on SHE’s programs are as follows:
- Build your own home: SHE’s staff supervises construction for eight to 12 families who have agreed to help build each other’s homes. Family members pour foundations, install wiring, lay tile, and more for each new house as part of the construction process.
- Housing Rehabilitation: Deferred payment loans make essential repairs to older homes possible. These fixes may include electrical, plumbing, and roofing repairs.
- Sustainable energy solutions: SHE’s Sustainable Energy Solutions Team connects disadvantaged communities to resources that provide access to affordable energy and clean transportation infrastructure.
- Emergency services: Vulnerable populations receive education about natural disasters, including flood, fire, earthquake, and pandemic preparations. Families are helped with water well replacement, water filtration, and access to clean water.
“Self-Help Enterprises is thrilled to have the support of Bank of the Sierra,” said SHE CEO Tom Collishaw. “This grant will help us produce more high-quality affordable housing and help residents access clean drinking water in the Central Valley.”
“We want to help make every community that we’re a part of better,” said Kevin McPhaill, Bank of the Sierra President and Chief Executive Officer. “That includes investing in organizations like Self-Help Enterprises that help our communities every day through housing and clean water programs.”
About Self-Help Enterprises
Self-Help Enterprises is a nationally recognized community development organization whose mission is to work together with low-income families to build and sustain healthy homes and communities. Since 1965, SHE’s efforts have touched the lives of over 65,000 families. The organization has helped more than 6,200 families build their own homes, rehabilitated over 6,300 unsafe homes, developed over 1,300 units of affordable rental housing, and has provided technical assistance for reliable access to safe drinking water and sanitary sewer infrastructures to more than 160 small communities. SHE’s commitment to providing resources and training for individuals builds highly effective leaders in communities that also promote collaborative solutions for improving communities.
About the Sierra Grant Program
Since its inception in 2004, the Sierra Grant Program has been responsible for donating over $3.8 million to organizations that improve local communities. For more information, visit the bank’s website at BankoftheSierra.com/SierraGrant.
About Bank of the Sierra
Bank of the Sierra is in its 45th year of operations and is the largest independent bank headquartered in the South San Joaquin Valley. Bank of the Sierra is a community-centric regional bank, which offers a full range of retail and commercial banking services with full-service branches located within the counties of Tulare, Kern, Kings, Fresno, Ventura, San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara. The bank also maintains two loan production offices and an online branch and provides specialized lending services through an agricultural credit center. Bank of the Sierra is recognized as one of the strongest community banks in the country with a 5-star rating from Bauer Financial.