Kathi Ferrero Stepping Down

There is news about Jeremiah Development: Kathi Ferrero is now teaching high school history, which she is perfectly suited to do and really excited about. Because of this new endeavor, she has stepped down as the executive director of Jeremiah Development (JD).

As one of the founding board members, Kathi was instrumental in the creation of Jeremiah and has ably led the organization to both fulfill her mission and move toward sustainability. Jeremiah was formed in 2008 by four downtown churches (now three) who recognized both the need of the neighborhood and their ability to make a difference. Jeremiah’s mission is to promote the well-being of our neighborhood. This mission was influenced by the following passage from the Bible “seek the well-being of the city…for in its well-being you will find your well-being.” (Jeremiah 27:9) Kathi has fostered many relationships with people and organizations in the city that have opened doors for our neighbors and JD as an organization.

We will certainly miss Kathi’s hands-on work with Jeremiah. Michelle Ryan, a child of Court Street UMC and an integral part of a few Rockford non-profits, will ably take the reigns. Kathi is not going too far; however, on Thursday the Governing Council voted to make Kathi one of our two representatives to the executive council and board of JD. Many thanks to Kathi for her dedication and hard work, which has made us a more faithful church. Please join us after worship for coffee hour on Sunday, September 18 to show our love and gratitude.

Jeremiah Development Summer News

July and August have been very busy months for Jeremiah Development. We introduced our new Coronado Haskell Housing Rehabilitation Program to the neighborhood. The program will receive funding from the City of Rockford Community and Economic Development department to assist our neighbors with home repairs, accessibility issues, sewer connections and local code issues. Qualified homeowners could receive up to $40,250 in forgivable loan funds. Over the last couple of weeks, volunteers from the churches, Jeremiah board and committees have been out walking door-to-door with 2016 Neighborhood Surveys. As you may recall, in 2013 we partnered with HomeStart to complete a survey of the Jeremiah Development neighborhood. This included block surveys, building surveys, as well as 175 one-on-one resident surveys. This time around, volunteers have interviewed 185 residents! Final results are still to come, but we have learned that many residents report they have seen some positive change over the past three years. Thank you to all of the volunteers who took the time, and braved the heat, to make this happen! Jeremiah Development is saying a grateful farewell and extending our overwhelming thanks to Kathleen Ferrero who has been our Executive Director for the last six years. Kathi has been a tireless and passionate visionary for Jeremiah Development. She has guided neighborhood involvement, and developed important partnerships that will carry Jeremiah into the future. Kathi will be returning to a former passion – teaching. We wish her much success and happiness.

Join us Sunday, September 18 for Jazz Worship and to celebrate Kathi Ferrero’s work with Jeremiah Development