DALLAS, March 11, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (FHLB Dallas) and Cypress Bank of Pittsburg, Texas, awarded a Special Needs Assistance Program (SNAP) grant to a Pittsburg woman who is facing serious health issues. The grant was used to make repairs and modifications to 48-year-old Drusilla Edwards's home in order to make her day-to-day living situation easier and safer.
In 2010, FHLB Dallas set aside $1.5 million of its annual Affordable Housing Program (AHP) funds for SNAP, a rehabilitation program available through FHLB Dallas member institutions that provides grant funds to assist income-qualified, special needs homeowners with home repairs and modifications. Each SNAP recipient is eligible to receive $5,000. If a member financial institution contributes at least $350 toward costs associated with the rehabilitation, the homeowner is eligible to receive up to $7,000 from FHLB Dallas.
Ms. Edwards learned about SNAP in a conversation with her loan officer, Shirley Mead, at Cypress Bank in Pittsburg, where she is a longtime customer. "I love Cypress Bank," Ms. Edwards said. "They have been a big help to me."
Ms. Edwards received a total of $7,269 in grant funds, $6,919.66 from FHLB Dallas and $350 from Cypress Bank.
The grant helped Ms. Edwards pay for a new roof on her home, and the construction of a new, handicap-accessible bathroom attached to her bedroom. The house, which was built in 1953, was left to her by her grandmother and was in serious need of repairs.
Ms. Edwards, who was formerly employed in the medical records department of Truman W. Smith Hospital in Gladewater, Texas, has battled poor health for the past several years and could not afford the necessary home repairs. She suffered a stroke in 2005, and is living with problems caused by severe diabetes.
Once the SNAP grant was approved, it was only about two weeks before the work on Ms. Edwards's home began, and within another two weeks all work was completed. The new roof and bathroom have greatly enhanced her quality of life. Prior to the renovations, Ms. Edwards often worried about the costs of replacing the roof; and she would have to walk from her bedroom to the other side of the house to reach the one existing bathroom.
"I am weak on my right side from the stroke, so having the new bathroom attached to my bedroom has been a tremendous help," she said.
Cypress Bank has worked with FHLB Dallas on six SNAP grants, ranging from $4,214 up to the full $7,000. "It is such a positive thing," Ms. Mead said. "There are some other programs in our area that provide help, but none do as much as this program does. Ms. Edwards really appreciates the renovations and the difference it has made for her living conditions."
About the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas
The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas is one of 12 district banks in the FHLBank System created by Congress in 1932. FHLB Dallas, with total assets of $65.1 billion as of December 31, 2009, is a member-owned cooperative that supports housing and community development by providing competitively priced advances and other credit products to more than 900 members and associated institutions in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, and Texas. For more information, visit the FHLB Dallas web site at fhlb.com.
The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=3013
About Cypress Bank
Cypress Bank is locally owned and has served the financial needs of Northeast Texas families since 1977. Its home office is located in Pittsburg, Texas, and it has branch offices in the cities of Commerce, Lone Star and Mount Pleasant. Cypress Bank is a full service, family financial center providing checking, savings and IRA accounts, as well as all types of consumer and commercial loans to its customers in Camp, Titus, Morris, Franklin, and Hunt Counties. For more information, contact the Cypress Bank main office at (903) 856-6653.