Friends of DHA
Top local executive: Annie Hancock, Executive Director
No. of metro-Denver employees: 4
Founding year: 2012
Website: friendsofdha.org
Phone: 207-831-7382
Mission statement: Friends of DHA’s mission is to provide self-sufficiency programming for residents with two main goals: to empower individuals to break free from the cycle of poverty and achieve lasting economic independence and to ensure our senior citizens and individuals with disabilities can thrive comfortably within their homes, maintaining their cherished independence without the need for assisted living.
Origin story: Friends of DHA was founded by the Resident Community Services Department at DHA in 2012 in an effort to diversify funding opportunities for supportive services. Friends of DHA is a standalone nonprofit that works in collaboration with the Denver Housing Authority to raise dollars through donors, sponsors and grant funding to help fill needed gaps in existing programming. Over 80% of funding goes towards direct services.
Changes in approach: Friends of DHA has remained steadfast in its mission to provide supportive service funding towards the residents and communities that we serve. However, as needs have evolved within the communities that we serve, Friends has shifted the approach to how we serve the residents. For example, with the onset of Covid, Friends put an increased effort of digital inclusion efforts to ensure all residents have access to high speed and affordable WiFi and devices. Friends is also responsive to the availability of funding opportunities and works within the five core focus areas of economic upward mobility, health and wellness, community engagement, youth development and digital inclusion to ensure we are providing the necessary support.
Big success: One of the biggest successes of bringing the Expressions Program to our older adult communities across DHA. Through funding from the Caring for Denver foundation, Friends is partnering with a local counseling group to provide in person mental wellness classes and free one-on-one counseling sessions for older adults. Using art, food and body movement, the Expressions Program is giving our older adults a platform to share and connect with one another and to begin to break down stigmas around mental health. Since starting the program in March of 2024, we have 178 participants in the program.
Partnerships: Our primary partnership with for-profit companies has been through our Financial Coach Collaborative. Friends successfully brought together multiple banks to provide funding to hire a financial coach to work across DHA communities. This has given Friends the flexibility to provide one-on-one financial coaching as well as population-specific classes to work through budgeting, opening bank accounts and establishing savings accounts. Friends also partners with the for-profit community during our annual fundraiser. Through sponsorships, Friends is able to raise funding to support direct services, such as bus passes, computer labs, educational scholarships, backpacks and training academies.
Key partner: Our main funding sources are through grants and fee-for-service. Friends of DHA provides Homebuyer Education in partnership with the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority to both Denverites and across the state of Colorado. Homebuyer education gives individuals the tools to effectively prepare for homeownership and the resources to connect them with lenders, banks and support systems to allow them to take that next step.
How do you make sure programs are effective? What do you do if something is not working? Friends of DHA relies heavily on community feedback. We utilize our existing resident council boards and surveys to better understand the needs of each community. We present programs to the community and solicit feedback from residents to ensure it aligns with their interests and needs. With the rollout of larger programs, such as the Financial Coaching Collaborative and Expressions Program, we utilize program specific surveys to better understand the impact of the program. This is essential as it allows up to respond quickly to our communities.
Collaboration: A critical piece of Friends of DHA is developing and expanding partnerships. In September we are hosting an Economic Empowerment Summit where we will provide virtual classes around workforce development, financial literacy and homeownership. We will also be hosting an in-person resource fair where we have invited over 25 partner organizations to share programs and opportunities with the community. Friends is dedicated to building out partnerships to work towards our many shared missions of improving the quality of life of Denver residents.
New efforts and programs: We are always looking at new programs to launch. We are working on the design and build out of a new community garden and the rehab of two existing gardens. Through our community gardening program, we work alongside our residents to grow over 19,000 pounds of produce. Gardens not only support healthy eating habits, but also give residents an opportunity to engage in the outdoors and with their peers through a shared interest.
Anything else? Friends of DHA is one of DHA’s nonprofit affiliate organizations and is dedicated to ensuring all Denver Housing Residents have access to programs and resources to improve their overall quality of life and to promote upward economic mobility.