Impact Stories

Borrower : Housing Families First Where : Richmond, VA Loan Amount : $250,000 Project Type : Line of Credit   Opportunity Since 2001, Housing Families First has helped families experiencing homelessness obtain the tools and resources to find – and maintain – stable housing. Building Neighbors, one of three programs, is designed to place vulnerable families – living in any of Richmond’s family shelters or the streets – in safe, affordable, and permanent homes. Hilliard …

Borrower : Fort Monroe Foundation Where : Fort Monroe, VA Loan Amount : $250,000 Project Type : Line of Credit   Opportunity Designated a National Historic Landmark District and listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register, Fort Monroe is evolving from a decommissioned U.S. Army Base to a richly diverse destination site. Fort Monroe is located in Hampton, Va., where the mouth of Chesapeake Bay meets the James River. …

Borrower : La Cocina VA Where : Arlington, VA Loan Amount : $300,000 Project Type : Bridge loan   Opportunity In 2012, Patricia “Paty” Funegra founded La Cocina VA, to combat unemployment, hunger, obesity, and food waste in the Washington, D.C. metro area. Paty founded La Cocina after a nearly 20-year career in international development with multilateral organizations that supported efforts in Latin American and Caribbean countries. Through the area’s only bilingual culinary job-training program, …

Borrower : RER Energy Group Where : Salem, VA Loan Amount : $260,000 Project Type : Construction and permanent loan   Opportunity For the next 25 years, Goodwill store managers in Salem, Va., will need to look no further than the roof – and sky – for electricity to power the retail location. RER Energy Group, a regional leader in renewable energy, saw an opportunity to install a solar system on top of the building. Rather …

Borrower : Roanoke Redevelopment and Housing Authority Where : Roanoke, VA Loan Amount : $719,000 and $802,250 Project Type : Commercial real estate loan   Opportunity The Roanoke Redevelopment and Housing Authority (RRHA) is committed to providing quality, affordable homes for residents. Currently, RRHA is working on expanding housing options for elderly and disabled residents. As part of the initiative, RRHA identified an opportunity to build eight new housing units in Roanoke’s West End in the …

Borrower : Industrial Development Authority of Russell County Where : Lebanon, VA Loan Amount : $2.7 million Project Type : Equipment loan   Opportunity Economic growth requires a long-term vision and strategy. The Industrial Development Authority (IDA) of Russell County recognized that Southwest Virginia could attract global manufacturers because of its access to Interstate 81 and a readily available workforce. To proactively foster a supportive business climate, the IDA constructed a 76,000-square-foot shell building in Lebanon, …

Borrower : People Incorporated Where : Tappahannock, Culpeper and Fauquier Counties, VA Loan Amount : $5.2 million Project Type : Commercial Real Estate | Low-Income Housing Tax Credit loans   Opportunity Based in Abingdon, the 55-year-old People Incorporated of Virginia is one of the largest rural community action agencies in the nation. It serves residents throughout Virginia, and during the past decade has expanded its reach into other communities throughout the Commonwealth. Affordable housing in Virginia …

The PATH Foundation works to strengthen and impact access to health, senior services, childhood wellness and mental health resources throughout Virginia’s Fauquier, Rappahannock and Culpeper counties. PATH’s grant cycles and community engagement initiatives allow them to improve the health and vitality of the communities they serve. Earlier this year, PATH Foundation made a $250,000 deposit with VCC into a Premium Money Market Account. Similar to any other bank deposit vehicle, PATH’s funds are federally protected and grow at …

Borrower : Ninja Kombucha Brewing Co. Where : Richmond, VA Loan Amount : $128,000 Project Type : SBA 7(a) Term Loan   Opportunity Brett Nobile was looking for a healthy alternative to the hops and barley of beer when he came across kombucha, a sparkling living tea drink popular for its probiotic health benefits. Nobile began drinking kombucha on a regular basis, and decided to start brewing his own batches to save cash. A brewer of …

When Mark Constantine stepped into his role as president and CEO of the Richmond Memorial Health Foundation, his directives from trustees were clear: Create positive social change through sustainable, socially responsible funding strategies. “One of the expectations from the Board was for me to think about what we could do at the intersection of health equity, the social determinants of health, and impact investing,” he recalls. RMHF’s trustees and stakeholders were interested in the idea of …