Thrive Alliance to Celebrate 30 Years of Commitment to Creating More Affordable Housing

Housing Partnerships, Inc. started renovating and building homes in 1990

[Columbus, IN] (January 15, 2020)

Thrive Alliance will mark its 30th year of involvement in building affordable housing in 2020.

A celebration to kick-off Thrive Alliance’s 30-year anniversary will be held at The Commons on Wednesday, January 29, 2020 with a meet-and-greet beginning at 5:30 p.m. and a program from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

J. Jacob Sipe, executive director of the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority will be speaking on the importance to all communities of developers of safe and affordable housing similar to Thrive Alliance. Mark Lindenlaub, executive director of Thrive Alliance will review the past 30 years and offer glimpses into Thrive Alliance’s future.

In its 30 years of existence, Thrive Alliance Housing Services has created a total of 555 living units, renovated 230 existing homes, provided management for 105 rental homes, sold 106 houses to first-time home buyers, built 43 houses on empty lots in established neighborhoods and built or renovated 79 homes in the Lincoln-Central (downtown Columbus) neighborhood.

Under the name of Housing Partnerships, Inc., the organization was conceived in June 1989 by an adult Sunday school class at First Presbyterian Church. This group was looking for a tangible way to express their belief that they were blessed to be a blessing to others. They quickly discovered that there was a large unmet need for decent, safe, affordable housing for working families. As a pilot project, they reroofed and repaired the exterior of a house owned by an elderly woman in the church neighborhood who couldn’t afford the repairs necessary to make her house weather tight.

Encouraged by this early success, Housing Partnerships was incorporated as a not-for-profit organization in 1990 to provide a solid base for growth. First Presbyterian Church provided a startup grant, and seven other churches became Housing Partnerships members and added to our initial funding. A Home Ownership Program was developed, and the first house was purchased and renovated by 180 volunteers.

The public is invited to attend the 30th anniversary celebration, with RSVP required. Interested parties can sign up via the Thrive Alliance Facebook page. For more information, email [email protected] or call 812-372-6918.

Guided by the vision that everyone has the opportunity to live a secure, engaged and independent life, our mission at Thrive Alliance is to improve the quality of life and health for people at risk of losing their independence.

We help people get the right information, resources and support needed to live as independently as possible.  Our network of programs focuses on issues related to affordable housing, caregiver support and services, nutrition and wellness programs, transportation and accessibility services, as well as fostering community-wide support for aging related issues. We serve as Indiana’s Agency on Aging for Bartholomew, Brown, Decatur, Jackson and Jennings counties.