Rebuilding Together National Names New President and CEO

Please join us in welcoming Caroline Blakely as President and CEO of Rebuilding Together National!

“After an extensive national search, the board of directors unanimously agreed that Caroline’s expertise and successful 30-year career in both business and law make her an ideal choice to lead Rebuilding Together. Her strong leadership skills, wide-ranging corporate and real estate connections, and engaging enthusiasm will help our organization energize impact and reach to serve more people and communities,” said Sherry Chris, who has served on the Rebuilding Together Board for more than three years and was recently elected to chair the national Board of Directors.

Caroline joins Rebuilding Together from Cassin & Cassin LLP where she was a partner in the Real Estate Finance Group. She also served as vice president in Fannie Mae’s multifamily business, defining its strategic direction for growing asset management and counter party responsibilities. Earlier, Caroline practiced real estate, banking, and corporate law in the Washington, D.C., area, including co-founding a woman-owned firm specializing in Resolution Trust Corporation matters.

“Rebuilding Together is a strong organization now poised to go beyond transforming lives one house at a time to revitalizing entire neighborhoods. It is a privilege to join the affiliates, staff, and corporate and community partners of Rebuilding Together to make this vision a reality,” Caroline said.

Active in business and community service organizations, Caroline was a member of the Commercial Real Estate Finance Council (CREFC) Board of Governors. She was recently elected to the board of the public mortgage real estate investment trust ARES Commercial Real Estate (ACRE). She is a member of the Urban Land Institute’s Responsible Property Investment Council, and the steering committee of the Women’s Leadership Initiative. She volunteers on the boards of trustees for Global Communities and subsidiary, Vitas, which specialize in international development and microfinance.

Caroline received her Juris Doctor cum laude from Georgetown University Law Center and her Bachelor of Arts with high distinction, Phi Beta Kappa, from the University of Virginia.

Don’t Forget about Letter-Palooza – March, 23rd at 5:30 pm at Insight Brewing!

What is Letter-Palooza?

Join us at Insight Brewing, named best new Twin Cities brewery by Thrillist, and help raise money for Rebuilding Together Twin Cities! Over the course of the night, enjoy locally-brewed beer and socialize with staff, board members, donors, volunteers and homeowners as we send letters to each of our contacts on behalf of Rebuilding Together Twin Cities to build support and generate some resources for our upcoming build season!

How does it work?

  1. Come up with a list of about 20 contacts to whom you can mail our fundraising letter. Ideas to generate your list can be found here.
  2. Before the party, edit your letters, two options can be found here. For people that are just being introduced to Rebuilding Together, we recommend that you use the “Intro Letter,” for those that are familiar with our work we recommend you use the “Spring Appeal Letter.”
  3. Print your letters and bring them with your mailing list to the party.
  4. Write short notes, stuff your letters, and address envelopes based on your mailing list.
  5. Have fun, while hanging out with our fellow Rebuilding Together Twin Cities friends. We will provide the envelopes, brochures and postage.

Big THANKS to Insight Brewing for hosting this event!

For more details and to RSVP check out: www.bidpal.net/letterpalooza.  Let’s make it bigger and better than ever this year!

Brackets for Good Kicks Off on February 26th!

We are excited to be participating in this year’s Brackets for Good tournament!  We will be competing against other nonprofits in a single-elimination, bracket-style fundraising tournament that will help raise much-needed funds and awareness for our work.  The winner will receive a grand prize donation and it’s free for all nonprofits to participate.  Check out our page and make a donation by clicking here.

Donate to Rebuilding Together through Thrivent Choice®

We are pleased to announce that we have been approved to participate in Thrivent Financial’s Thrivent Choice® program. By directing Choice Dollars®, eligible Thrivent members can recommend which nonprofit organizations they feel should receive charitable grant funding from Thrivent. If you are an eligible member, please consider us when directing Choice Dollars.
To learn more about Thrivent Choice, visit Thrivent.com/thriventchoice. Or call Thrivent at 800-847-4836, and say “Thrivent Choice” when prompted.