Introducing WATCH's New Executive Director

From the Board President

Dear Friend of WATCH CDC,

I'm very pleased to announce that Erica Schwarz will be joining WATCH as our new Executive Director. For many of you, Erica's will be a familiar face since she was a valued member of our staff from 2001 to 2006, serving as Director of Community Organizing. In the intervening two years, she has been further honing her expertise as an Affordable Housing Specialist for the City of Medford. Prior to joining WATCH in 2001, she was a Development Assistant for the Community Food Bank of New Jersey. Erica received a Master's in Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning from Tufts University. She has served as President of the Community Day Center of Waltham and as an editorial board member of the MACDC Journal of Community Power Building. Clearly, her professional life has been spent preparing for this job and we are excited to have her in it!

There will be an Open House to meet and greet Erica on Thursday, March 6 from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the WATCH office, 517 Moody Street, Waltham. Please join us at that event to help welcome Erica and share your ideas for WATCH's future. I look forward to seeing you there.

WATCH was founded in 1988 by community members and activists on the South Side of Waltham, to deal with blight and poor living conditions and advocate for tenants. In 1994 WATCH started to develop affordable housing. As of October 2007, we have completed 35 units of affordable housing, including the only newly constructed housing in Waltham affordable to people earning 60% or less of the area median income, and Belmont's first affordable housing in over 50 years. We are also working to improve living conditions in Waltham's dilapidated public housing.

Thank you for your continuing support of WATCH as we head into our 20th anniversary year, and be sure to save the evening of April 16 for our anniversary gala!

Sincerely,

Marci Diamond

Board President

About WATCH CDC

WATCH (Waltham Alliance To Create Housing) is a non-profit community development corporation in Waltham, Massachusetts, whose mission is to build, preserve, and promote affordable housing and to enhance economic opportunities, civic participation and leadership of low- and moderate-income families in the Waltham area. For more information, please visit our website or call us at (781) 891-6689. Donations made to WATCH are tax-deductible and greatly appreciated.