Intesa Partner Maddy Kilkenny with local leaders at the Civic Communities’ 14th Street Greenway Ribbon Cutting on March 9, 2021 [Credit: Kristian Carreon]
At Intesa, our team is proud to give back to San Diego. For me, there is nothing as personally rewarding as working with people committed to addressing the biggest challenges facing our region and seeing the positive impacts first-hand. If you know San Diego, you know housing is challenge Number One.
Over the past two years I’ve had the honor of serving as Chair of the Civic Communities Board of Directors as it transitioned away from the City of San Diego’s in-house revitalization effort and became its own 501c3 organization.
The Civic team is currently celebrating a decade of working tirelessly support communities in need through catalyzing affordable housing projects, job opportunities in low-income communities, youth development programs, and critical developments in education and health care. Not to mention the many small businesses they have helped to identify funding and strategies to keep their doors open and thrive during unprecedented times.
The Civic board stands firm on its commitment to continue investing in communities for projects that allow our neighborhoods to grow and succeed. For the past decade, Civic Communities has proudly served the needs of more than 70,000 low-income people and created or preserved more than 3,0000 jobs through employment and social services projects.
For example: In early 2020, Civic Community Partners closed a $4 million NMTC investment with Access Youth Academy to finance construction of a new, two-story, 21,500 square-foot structure to house a nine-court, state-of-the-art squash facility and learning center in the community of Encanto.
The new center provides services to approximately 1,300 local students, scaling up from the 120 students served at its current location. A portion of the building houses three classrooms used for academic studies and tutoring sessions, a computer lab for college prep and admissions assistance, a conference room for meetings and workshops, a technology center, multipurpose meeting rooms and instructional space, staff offices, a kitchen/break room, and a parent lounge. The facility blends sports, academics, and opportunities to offer training and classes for the public.
You can read more success stories like this in Civic’s newly released Impact Report. I could not be more excited to be an active part of Civic’s growth. I am passing the gavel of Chair, but I proudly remain a vocal supporter of this organization and the many communities it serves.
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**A Note from the Intesa Team**
Maddy will not say this so we will: chairing a board of any non-profit is no easy task, but doing so for one in a very public organizational transition is extraordinarily challenging. Maddy is the kind of board leader that *actually does* review the board book before a meeting; she’s always early to said meetings; and yes, she really has read the bylaws. We are beyond delighted to know and love her, but we are particularly proud of the way she joyfully and effectively serves this community. Thank you, Maddy!
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