Client: Washington State Farmworker Housing Trust

Built a statewide partnership to create farmworker housing. Incubated the organization; staffed the Board; led strategic planning and research; developed funding and communication strategies. The Trust’s Board members included growers, housing authorities, farmworker advocates and a representative of Senator Patty Murray’s office. As the facilitator, we helped the Board members find a set of goals they could agree on. With this agreement in place, we helped build a bipartisan coalition in the Legislature that led to state funding for farmworker housing and for low-income housing in general. (2003 – 2007)

Results: Raised $2.5 million for the Trust: $1.5 million in federal funding and $1 million from private philanthropy. The 2005 and 2006 Legislatures tripled state funding for farmworker housing.