CAMPTI, La.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The two-bedroom wood frame house where Cora Coldiron has lived for the past 15 years holds special meaning for her. It once belonged to her parents, and the 62-year-old retiree grew up there.
While she loves living in her childhood home, time has taken a toll on the 60-year-old house.
“My front and back doors had almost completely fallen apart,” said Ms. Coldiron. “And the window in my dining room was about to fall out.”
Other structural problems in the house – including deteriorated flooring in the living room, kitchen, dining room and bathroom, and woefully inadequate heating and cooling options – had made living there not only uncomfortable, but also unsafe.
Ms. Coldiron, a former accountant and tax professional whose sole income is Social Security, didn’t have money for the repairs.
“When you live on a fixed income, there’s not much left over after you pay for living expenses,” she said. “It sure doesn’t leave money for things like house repairs.”
She remembered that an acquaintance had once told her about a grant program that assists homeowners in her situation. She contacted MidSouth Bank, and applied for a Special Needs Assistance Program (SNAP) grant.
SNAP grants are awarded by FHLB Dallas through participating member institutions, such as MidSouth Bank. The $7,000 grant Ms. Coldiron received funded the critical repairs to her home, including the installation of a new dining room window, as well as a new heating and air conditioning unit. The grant also provided funding for a new front and back door, as well as flooring in her bathroom, kitchen, dining room and living room.
“I’m so pleased with everything that was done,” she said.
Since SNAP’s inception in 2009, more than $13 million has been awarded in grants through FHLB Dallas member institutions to assist more than 2,600 families across FHLB Dallas’ five-state District of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico and Texas. In 2017, FHLB Dallas awarded $1.5 million in SNAP grants that assisted 306 families. The $2 million in 2018 SNAP funding, made available in January on a first-come, first-served basis, has been exhausted.
“It’s so rewarding to be able to assist people such as Ms. Coldiron in getting funds to make much-needed repairs to their homes,” said LaCarsha Babers, community outreach development specialist at MidSouth Bank. “Thanks to the SNAP program, her home is now safer and more comfortable for her.”
Greg Hettrick, first vice president and director of Community Investment at FHLB Dallas, said there is a great need for programs like SNAP in FHLB Dallas’ five-state region.
“Improvements made through SNAP create safer living environments for local seniors and often make it possible for them to stay in their homes longer than they might have otherwise,” said Mr. Hettrick.
Without the SNAP grant, Ms. Coldiron said, it’s not likely she’d have been able to have the repairs done.
“I appreciate the grant and all of the work that was done,” she said. “It’s a blessing to have people that want to help others.”
About MidSouth Bank
MidSouth Bancorp, Inc. is a financial holding company headquartered in Lafayette, Louisiana, with assets of $1.9 billion as of March 31, 2018. MidSouth Bancorp, Inc. trades on the NYSE under the symbol “MSL.” Through its wholly owned subsidiary, MidSouth Bank, N.A., MidSouth offers a full range of banking services to commercial and retail customers in Louisiana and Texas. MidSouth Bank currently has 42 locations in Louisiana and Texas and is connected to a worldwide ATM network that provides customers with access to more than 55,000 surcharge-free ATMs. Additional corporate information is available at midsouthbank.com.
About the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas
The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas is one of 11 district banks in the FHLBank system created by Congress in 1932. FHLB Dallas, with total assets of $65.1 billion as of March 31, 2018, is a member-owned cooperative that supports housing and community development by providing competitively priced advances and other credit products to approximately 825 members and associated institutions in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico and Texas. Visit fhlb.com for more information.
