AT NO COST TO YOU, GET FUNDING FOR Community Organizing and Family Issues COFI WHEN YOU:
Buy a Home / Sell a Home / Lease Commercial Property

Your Real Estate Transactions can Strengthen Families and Communities
Community Organizing and Family Issues (COFI) works to provide low-income and low-opportunity families with support in every sense of the word. As a member of Investing In Communities®, COFI can increase their support of at-risk community members and families through all sorts of real estate transactions, including sales, purchases and commercial leases. So far, COFI has received $9,633 through IIC. This funding helps COFI make a major difference.
Beginning in 1995, passionate volunteers and leaders helped start COFI in Chicago. At its start, the organization was comprised of 18 community activists, including former community organizer turned President Barack Obama. COFI’s training sessions started as ways in which members could assist single mothers to realize their goals in order to make better leaders in the home and in the community.
As programs have developed, COFI has expanded its efforts to other aspects of civic life. The organization still works with families for training sessions, and has expanded to assist organizations within low-opportunity neighborhoods and communities to strengthen parent engagement. Manuals focused on these training efforts in Family Focused Organizing continue to be vital resources for hundreds of communities, and the organization continues its work in Chicago neighborhoods, as well as in East St. Louis.
Meet The Parents
One of the most inspiring parts of COFI’s efforts is their Meet the Parents campaign that shares success stories of some of their trainees and impacted parents. By providing a space for newcomers to the COFI model, it helps welcome them and give them a sense of belonging and purpose. Their stories help to accomplish vital COFI goals:
- Exemplifying persistence, courage and commitment to improving communities; and
- Providing women of color, some of the most silenced people in the United States, a platform to share their voice and passion.
Community Organizing
- Many underserved communities have organizations that work to strengthen and embolden parents to feel powerful in their homes and communities. COFI excels in working with individual parents in the community as well as organizers. The effort that goes into organizing can be taxing at times, especially in some of the most underserved areas. COFI uses a multipronged approach to ensure that everyone involved in improving neighborhoods is equipped to:
- Leave the work up to the parents, but instill in them the capability and knowledge to get the job done;
- Direct workshops with COFI parents, which provides a relatable, interactive experience;
- Provide a space for dialogue, as well as learning, because in order to make the biggest impact, the two must happen simultaneously.
Real Estate Transactions Can Mean Real Change for Communities-In-Need
It costs nothing to turn a brokered real estate transaction, whether it be a commercial lease, sale, or purchase, into financial resources for neighborhoods in need and parents ready to learn what it takes to turn things around. A home or property purchase of $300,000 means $1,300 for COFI and its mission to serve families. Make arrangements to support Community Organizing and Family Issues by starting your transaction with IIC. You can also use IIC to sign up with a broker you already have in mind, as long as you start with IIC. Take time today to make your next real estate transaction matter for COFI.
Location: Chicago, Illinois
Focus Area: Community Development, Education, Social Justice
Budget: $500k - $1 million
Most Recent:
$169
Total IIC Funding:
$17154