By Toledo Journal Staff
Since 1933 Lucas Metropolitan Housing Authority (LMHA) has been caring for the housing needs of the Toledo community by providing affordable housing to adults, seniors and children.
To commemorate 85 years of providing affordable housing opportunities and strengthening communities, Lucas Metropolitan Housing Authority hosted their anniversary event on Thursday January 24th at Parkway Place in Maumee, Ohio. The theme for the event was ‘Onward and Upward,Continuing the Journey From Good to Great’. The keynote speaker was Judge Glenda Hatchett.
Judge Hatchett presides over the nationally syndicated television show, Judge Hatchet. Both in 2008 and 2009 her show was nominated for a daytime Emmy awards for outstanding legal/courtroom program. In 2004 she authored the national best-seller, ‘Say What You Mean, Mean What You Say’. In 2010 she had another #1 best-seller, ‘Dare To Take Charge: Hoe to live your Life on Purpose’. Judge Hatchett has also been active with housing authorities across the country.
LMHA’s role has expanded significantly for over 85 years from providing public housing to focusing on developing wrap around services to its residents. Today, the housing authority-a quasi-government agency-owns and manages 2,633 public housing units and provides subsidized housing to 17,500 individuals. It is governed by a five-member Board of Commissioners, appointed by the Mayor of Toledo, The Lucas County Commissioners, and the Probate and Common Pleas Courts.
President and CEO Demetria Simpson of LMHA, said, “We have made great strides in helping our residences improve their quality of life and become self-sufficient. This event focused on the empowerment opportunities, provided to our residents, and the development of myriad community partnerships which help us continue the journey onward and upward.”
Their mission is to. create and maintain sustainable, affordable housing opportunities, provide pathways to better quality of life and empower vibrant communities. They serve a much broader mission than housing by providing programs and opportunities to improve the total quality of life for residents with the ultimate goal of helping them achieve self-sufficiency. In addition, other services coordinated through LMHA include: healthcare, education, family self-sufficiency (FSS), resident opportunities and self-sufficiency, Health Profession Opportunity Grants (HPOG), commodities, Children Feeding Program, Work Your Way Home, Youth Program, Senior Program, Financial Literacy, and HCV Home ownership.
They have many current programs focusing on infant mortality, feeding Lucas County children, providing education and training to low-income individuals, just to name a few.
LMHA partners with many other community organizations to bring these and other programs to the community and are the result of successful collaborations with numerous community partners.
