Contact: Tracy East
(919) 861-5327, teast@cesisolutions.org
Not-for-profit organization provides education and information to the community at its 2nd Annual Community Day event in celebration of National Homeownership Month
Raleigh, NC (July 16, 2013) – Consumer Education Services, Inc. (CESI), a non-profit service provider of comprehensive personal financial education and solutions for all life stages, celebrated National Homeownership Month with its 2nd Annual Community Day event on June 29. This year, CESI partnered with Habitat for Humanity of Wake County, making this one of the largest National Homeownership Month celebrations in the Triangle. The event was held at the Habitat ReStore in Raleigh.
More than 150 people including attendees and volunteers from both organizations participated in the event, and more than 110 local families were provided information from vendors. The vendors attending the celebration included housing counseling agencies, local banks, and other organizations seeking to connect homeowners or potential homeowners with housing resources. Dozens of people participated in credit and budgeting workshops put on by the two organizations.
“The Community Day event was a time to come together with the local community to celebrate National Homeownership Month and the ongoing American dream of homeownership,” Sheryl Merritt, Program Manager at CESI’s Homeownership Center, said. “This was an opportunity for CESI to give back by sharing information, education, food and fun in the community where CESI’s clients and employees live, work and play.”
Adult homeowners weren’t the only ones to benefit from Community Day festivities. The event provided fun activities for the rest of the family as well, including food, music, and games for kids. “Children receive so many benefits from homeownership, so we wanted to include them today too,” Merritt said.
This year’s Community Day celebration marked the first year collaborating with Habitat for Humanity to share homeownership information. Participants at this year’s event walked away armed not only with knowledge of homeownership issues, but with a desire to learn more. “All workshop participants were thoroughly engaged and appreciated the information, and several participants were interested in the additional services we provide,” Merritt said.
This year, more than 35 volunteers, including CESI employees and Habitat volunteers, facilitated the event. Next year, Merritt expects the celebration to expand even further, with more vendors, more sponsors, and more media coverage. “Community Day has become a signature event for CESI and we’re looking forward to expanding to help even more members of our community with their homeownership issues in the years to come,” Merritt said.
CESI is a not-for-profit organization that helps consumers achieve financial freedom by offering a complete life cycle of services: debt management, housing counseling, credit counseling, financial education and pre-bankruptcy counseling. For more information, please visit www.CesiSolutions.org or call 1-855-716-2451.