NeighborWorks® America Joins America250 to Highlight the Role of Housing and Community in America's Story

As America Marks 250 Years, NeighborWorks America Spotlights the Role of Housing in Shaping the Nation

WASHINGTON, DC, UNITED STATES, July 2, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- For 250 years, homes and neighborhoods have helped shape the American experience.

They have been the places where families built stability, where neighbors came together to solve challenges, where small businesses took root and where generations worked to create better opportunities for those who followed.

As the nation commemorates its 250th anniversary, NeighborWorks America is joining America250’s celebration through its Creating Homes, Building America campaign with the theme “250 Years of Community. Building What Comes Next." The effort will highlight the role housing and community development have played in America's history and the role they will continue to play in the nation's future.

Throughout the year, NeighborWorks will elevate stories from communities across the country that demonstrate how housing, resident leadership and local partnerships create opportunity and strengthen neighborhoods.

"America's story is ultimately a story of communities," said Marietta Rodriguez, President & CEO of NeighborWorks America. "For generations, homes and neighborhoods have provided the foundation for opportunity, stability and connection. As we look toward the future, ensuring that more people have access to safe, stable and affordable housing will remain essential to strengthening communities and expanding opportunity across America."

America250 is the national nonpartisan organization charged by Congress to lead the commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

"America's 250th anniversary is an opportunity to honor the communities that have shaped our nation's past and are building its future," said Jen Condon, Executive Vice President of America250. "NeighborWorks America's work reflects the local leadership, resilience and civic spirit that continue to define the American story. Through this partnership, we are celebrating the people and places whose contributions remind us that America's story is still being written in communities across the country."

The collaboration reflects a shared commitment to elevating stories that connect America's past, present and future through the experiences of communities across the country.

The effort aligns NeighborWorks America's national Creating Homes, Building America campaign with the broader America250 commemoration, creating an opportunity to connect the nation's housing story to its civic history.

That story is reflected in communities across the country and in the origins of NeighborWorks America itself.

In the 1960s, resident leader Dorothy Mae Richardson organized her neighbors in Pittsburgh's Central Northside neighborhood to address deteriorating housing conditions and community disinvestment. Working alongside residents, lenders, elected officials and community partners, Richardson helped create a new model for community development that empowered residents to shape their own future.

Her work helped spark a national movement that ultimately led to the creation of NeighborWorks America and a network that today includes nearly 250 community-based organizations serving communities in every state, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, and on Native lands.

The same spirit of resident leadership continues today.

In fiscal year 2025, NeighborWorks America and the NeighborWorks network helped create 17,600 homeowners, provided housing and financial capability counseling and education to more than 102,900 people and supported nearly 48,700 jobs in communities nationwide.

Behind each of those numbers is a story of a family achieving homeownership, a neighborhood preserving affordable housing, a resident leader strengthening community connections or a local organization helping create pathways to opportunity.

At a time when communities across the country face growing housing challenges, NeighborWorks America believes the lessons of the past remain relevant today.

Strong communities are built through local leadership, collaboration and sustained investment. Housing remains one of the most powerful tools for creating stability, strengthening local economies and expanding opportunity.

"As we reflect on the nation's history, we also have an opportunity to think about what comes next," Rodriguez said. "The next chapter of America's story will be shaped by the choices we make today. By investing in housing, supporting communities and creating pathways to opportunity, we can help ensure future generations have the foundation they need to thrive."

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About NeighborWorks America
For nearly 50 years, Neighborhood Reinvestment Corp., a Congressionally chartered national nonprofit known as NeighborWorks^® America, has strived to make every community safer and more prosperous. Our network of excellence includes nearly 250 nonprofits in every state, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, and on Native lands. NeighborWorks offers grant funding, peer exchange, technical assistance, evaluation tools and access to best-in-class training as the nation's leading trainer of housing and community development professionals. NeighborWorks network organizations build homes and apartments, expanding the supply of affordable housing in every community; provide financial counseling and coaching that increases self-sufficiency; encourage resident leadership, and collaborate with local stakeholders in the areas of health, economic development, employment and education. In Fiscal Year 2025, for every dollar received from Congress, NeighborWorks network and NeighborWorks America attracted an additional $74 of investment from other sources.

For more information, visit neighborworks.org.

About America250

America250 is the national nonpartisan initiative working to engage every American in celebrating and commemorating the Semiquincentennial, the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. It is spearheaded by the congressionally-appointed U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission and its sole-supporting nonprofit organization, America250.org, Inc., together known as America250. This multi-year effort kicked off with America’s Invitation on July 4, 2023: a national public engagement campaign inviting all Americans to share their stories and their hopes and dreams for the future of this country. Leading up to July 4, 2026, America250 is working to provide opportunities for all Americans to pause and reflect on our nation’s past, honor the contributions of all Americans, and look to the future we want to create for the next generation and beyond. To learn more, visit America250.org, and follow us on X, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and TikTok.

Arian Tyler
NeighborWorks America
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