When Dave Crawford became CEO of Dallas Area Habitat for Humanity in 2018, it was not the best of times for the organization that provides “affordable homeownership opportunities, financial education, advocacy and neighborhood empowerment.”
According to The Dallas Morning News columnist Sharon Grigsby a year later,
The nonprofit’s aggressive experiment to expand construction far beyond its traditional volunteer-built model had vaulted Habitat among the area’s largest home developers and won it rave reviews from a City Hall staring down an affordable housing crisis.
“But underneath that dazzling success, Habitat was increasingly gasping for air as it sunk deeper into a sea of red.”
The red was an estimated $10M in unsecured debt.
Within months of taking on his new role, Dave took major steps to stop the hemorrhaging by selling Dallas Habitat’s West Dallas headquarters for $10.2M and implementing “a five-year strategic plan that prioritized housing affordability and financial education across neighborhoods.”
One of the keys was returning to its roots of “volunteer-based construction of 25 homes annually and devoting more resources to homeowner education.”
Just as things were on track, the pandemic hit. But Dave “ensured that no jobs were eliminated due to the pandemic and that all home construction for families was completed on time and within budget.”
Now that his POA is on a sturdy road to success, Dave has announced that he will be retiring once his successor is selected this year.
According to Dallas Habitat Board Chair Juan Suarez, “Dave joined Dallas Habitat in 2018 after a 40-year career in the C-Suite of the private sector, with the objective to lead the organization towards a strong financial position and shore up our foundation. Dave was dedicated to serving our mission and families at a greater, more sustainable scale and has exceeded all expectations. We are grateful he chose Dallas Habitat to serve in the latter part of his esteemed career and the Board would like to thank Dave for his leadership.”
* Photo provided by Dallas Area Habitat for Humanity
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