HCA Newsletter

On this page we share HCA’s most recent monthly newsletter.

Those who need translation can select their language from the menu on the upper right. Enjoy!

Sa a pèmèt moun ki bezwen tradiksyon li nan pwòp lang yo lè yo chwazi lang yo nan meni ki anlè dwat. Jwi!

Esto permite a quienes necesitan traducción leerlo en su propio idioma seleccionando su idioma en el menú en la esquina superior derecha. ¡Disfrutar!

这样,那些需要翻译的人就可以通过从右上角的菜单中选择自己的语言来以自己的语言阅读。享受!

October 2024 Newsletter

HCA Annual Meeting &
Community Dinner!
    

Tuesday, October 22, 2024
6:00—8:00 pm
First Parish Church

630 Mass Ave, Arlington
(at corner with Pleasant Street)
This is a free community event.
All are welcome!Celebrate Accomplishments: Dorothy Road ADU & Sunnyside!
Honor Awardee: ArCs Cluster
Meet Neighbors
Share Your Views
Vote for the Board of Directors*
Vote on Proposed Bylaw Changes*
And…vote on the colors for HCA’s Sunnyside Ave building!

* During the Annual Meeting HCA members may vote for the Board of Directors and on updates to HCA’s Bylaws.

If you have contributed at least $1 in the 12 months prior to the Annual Meeting — including contributing in person that night — you can vote.

Proposed Bylaw Changes would expand the definition of membership, place term limits on officers, clarify Board membership, clarify legitimacy of using email and video calls for certain business, clarify officer duties, and require a vote if HCA were to dissolve.

A document outlining the proposed changes will be available by October 4th on our website and in hard copy.

~ Childcare will be provided at the Annual Meeting ~
~ Language interpretation by prior request ~
~ Let us know if you need a ride! ~

RSVPs encouraged, but not required:
info@housingcorparlington.org
781-859-5294 x5

Thursday, November 7, 2024 @ 6:00 p.m.

Exploring on Affordoble Housing Overlay for Arlington

Arlington has a scarcity of undeveloped land and substantial zoning barriers to creating affordable housing developments that most commonly attract state and federal affordable housing funds. We’ll hear from a citizen working group developing a proposal to ease these barriers with an affordable housing zoning overlay, and discuss this option with affordable housing experts, local leaders and residents.

Register using the QR Code in the flyer below:

HCA Tenant Council Highlighted at Lahey Hospital Meeting!

HCA’s Tenant Council was a featured highlight during Beth Israel Lahey Health’s recent Community Benefits Annual Meeting! Tenant Council Steering Committee members Sherika Williamson and Michael Mango both spoke about the value of the Tenants Council in bringing tenant voice and agency to the management of HCA’s affordable homes and to the leadership development and community building that they are able to experience and advance as leaders in the Council.

Lahey Hospital provides vital annual funding to support HCA’s integrated programs of affordable housing, social services and civic engagement. HCA also holds a seat on their Community Benefits Advisory Council.

Thank you to Sherika and Mike for helping to share HCA’s work with a wider audience, and to Lahey for their recognition of the importance of the work in Arlington!

In Honor of Indigenous People’s Day

HCA meets our mission by providing affordable homes and helping people connect to resources, to each other, and to their own leadership abilities.  Our work helps so many people stay in a decent home, and in Arlington, which makes our community all the richer.

Of course, HCA carries out our work in Arlington, where we own land. But we know that hundreds of years ago, the Massachusett, Pawtucket, and Naumkeag people carried out their lives in this region, and very well on the land that HCA owns today. They built their own community, rich with its own relationships and culture. And they did that until Europeans came to make their claim to this land. They forcibly or deceivingly pushed the people they found off the land, or killed them to get them out of the way.

The stories of how those who used to live on the land we occupy today were treated, displaced, and killed are gruesome and horrific. Just the fact of their displacement from their homeland and the effort made to erase their culture goes against every part of HCA’s mission to provide stable, affordable housing and empower residents to build a supportive and equitable community. Some people from these native communities did survive, of course, and live today in our state, preserving the heritage they came from and its many traditions and beliefs.

We cannot change the past, but each of us can always do better for the future. In Massachusetts (now you know how our state got its name, if you weren’t aware before!), we celebrate Indigenous People’s Day on the 2nd Monday in October, while that date remains the federal Columbus Day holiday in many other states.

It’s useful to remember why we no longer celebrate Columbus Day in our state and to recall the history of genocide, enslavement, and other horrific violence against Native Americans from that time and from Columbus’ actions. And it’s just as important to take that knowledge and apply it to how we live our lives today. We all have the capacity to learn, change, and do better for ourselves, for our community, and for the world.

HCA wishes you a thoughtful and joyful Indigenous People’s Day. Let’s all learn and remain aware of Native American communities in our region today, and keep contributing the best parts of ourselves to our larger community. Maybe in a very small way, we can honor the people who were so violently pushed out by helping to ensure that today, at least, no one else has to leave.

Learn more about the current life of Massachusetts Tribe today.

Learn more from the MA Center for Native American Awareness

Mount Auburn Hospital is conducting a Community Health Survey!

Access the Survey Here.
This Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) will identify and prioritize local health and social needs. The CHNA will guide Mount Auburn Hospital and Beth Israel Lahey Heath’s community health strategy for the next three years.
The link above will take you to a community survey that is translated into 11 languages including Arabic, Armenian, Cape Verdean Creole, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Haitian Creole, Hindi, Khmer, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and Vietnamese.

They are especially looking to hear from people who have been negatively impacted by economics, or the state of housing, health care or other needs.

Share your voice and take the survey by November 1 for a chance to win a $100 Visa gift card!

HCA was at Town Day!

It was chilly and wet, but we made it work! Thanks to all who stopped by to chat about affordable housing and all of our work!

And a special thanks to Congresswoman Katherine Clark, who also took the time to visit!

Photo by Frank Tadley