CONCORD, N.H. – With new skills built and others strengthened, two of the newest Technical Assistance Providers in the ROC USA® Network are ready to apply what they’ve learned to help the ROCs they work with thrive.
Libby O’Flaherty of Cooperative Development Institute and Kendra Wall of PathStone Corporation, spent the last few days training and collaborating with ROC USA® at the Concord office.
“The staff was awesome,” O’Flaherty said. “The environment is great.”
Wall said one of the things that stuck out to her was the realization that she, O’Flaherty and the rest of the TA Providers in the Network are working toward the same mission: Supporting homeowners as they make strides in the resident-ownership movement.
“It’s nice to know there’s a bunch of people doing this,” she said, referring to her nearly 50 peers at nine Network Affiliates across the country. “They all bring something different to the table.”
The agenda covered pre- and post-purchase work and the resources they can use to help with that work, as well as market development and strategic planning.
The team at ROC-NH, a program of the New Hampshire Community Loan Fund, also invited the group to sit in on their weekly meeting and learn about their process.
Breaking up the day with different lessons not only teaches the attendees different parts of pre- and post-purchase work, but also allows them to meet and interact with members of the ROC USA staff.
“That continues to work really well,” said Gary Faucher, ROC USA Network’s National Training Manager.
Another significant benefit of the training is that they get to meet ROC USA founding President Paul Bradley; New Hampshire Community Loan Fund President Julie Eades; and MHC Cooperative consultant George Maskiell. These three were at the forefront of establishing the resident-ownership model in New Hampshire communities before it was brought to scale in 2008.
“I like to highlight that because it’s a huge thing,” Faucher said.
ROC USA Network consists of nine Certified Technical Assistance Providers who work with the 223 ROCs in 15 states — CASA of Oregon, Cooperative Development Institute, Northcountry Cooperative Foundation, NeighborWorks® Montana, PathStone, ROC-NH, ROC Northwest, Thistle and UROC.