History
Writing a history of Home Share of Central Vermont (HSCVT) is a little bit like a teenager publishing her memoir. We know our journey has just begun, but quite a few people worked very hard to get us to this point, and we want to give credit where credit is due.
HSCVT has always been a quintessential Vermont story of neighbors helping neighbors, starting in 2001 when an elderly gentleman told the Montpelier Housing Task Force of his personal struggle trying to find someone to share his home. He suggested that a homesharing program be started in Montpelier.
He must have made a powerful case, because the Task Force got right to work on his suggestion. They invited Kirby Dunn, Executive Director of HomeShare Vermont, which serves the Champlain Valley, to explain the program and recruited Chip Castle, who was then the Executive Director of the Central Vermont Council on Aging (CVCOA), to form a partnership. Both Kirby and Chip, who now directs the Barre Housing Authority, were absolutely critical to the birth of HSCVT, and we can’t thank them enough.
Kirby joined a Working Group organized by Chip to study whether or not it made any sense to try the home sharing approach in central Vermont. Other members of this Working Group (and they worked hard!) were representatives from the Montpelier Housing Task Force, City of Montpelier, the Washington County Long Term Care Team. A representative from the
Together with a consultant, the Working Group met with a wide range of community members in Washington County including various local human service and affordable housing groups, nursing home administrators, ministers and town managers. The Working Group also hosted a community-wide meeting.
Not surprisingly, the extensive community input combined with the Working Group’s own expertise led to the resounding conclusion that central Vermonters needed a home sharing program. Today, that need continues to grow; thanks to the Working Group’s foresight and judgment, HSCVT can now meet that need.
The next question to grapple with was how to fund the new program. (Funding remains a challenge! See donate page for how you can help.) The group decided to apply to the Vermont Community Development Program (VCDP) for a block grant. The City of Montpelier graciously agreed to serve as the block grant administrator. In 2003, the Agency of Commerce and Community Development awarded a $150,000 two-year grant through the VCDP. The City of Montpelier committed $10,000 and other communities awarded funds to start up the program. The Central Vermont Medical Center Auxiliary and the Vermont Community Foundation were early supporters, as well.
The new program needed more than money: we also needed a sponsor. Chip Castle again was critically important, as he and the CVCOA agreed to sponsor the new program. To this day, under new director Beth Stern, CVCOA serves as HSCVT’s sponsor.
We also needed to know how to run a home sharing program. Rather than reinvent the wheel, the new program modeled itself after the 20-year success of HomeShare Vermont. Kirby Dunn and the HomeShare Vermont staff worked very closely with the brand new Home Share of Central Vermont to provide training and support. Today, HomeShare Vermont and Home Share of Central Vermont are “sister programs,” collaborating on funding, policy decisions and finding homes for participants.
Finally, our “birthday” arrived. In March 2003, CVCOA hired Betsy Reid, a native Vermonter who previously worked for national nonprofits in Washington, DC and Los Angeles, to start the new program. Betsy in turn hired Elizabeth (Liz) Slayton, who had recently retired from Senator Patrick Leahy’s staff, as the new home sharing coordinator. There were also three volunteers on board: Ella May Speer, Betty Reid, and Bev Wilmott. As the saying goes, they all “got along famously.” Home Share of Central Vermont was off and running.
In July 2003 Home Share of Central Vermont began taking applications. That same month, Governor Jim Douglas led an exciting kick-off press conference where he recognized the “remarkable teamwork” of individuals and community groups cooperating with government agencies to bring home sharing to central Vermont. Everyone involved attended. It was a great celebration!
And the teamwork was remarkable. The Working Group’s vision and dedication combined to build a firm foundation for Home Share of Central Vermont. We salute our founders and our history, even as we look forward to growing an ever stronger home sharing program here in the heart of our beautiful state.
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