Housing Trust Fund Ventura County announces appointment of Cesar Hernandez to Board of Directors

Ventura County, CA – Housing Trust Fund Ventura County (Housing Trust Fund VC) has elected Cesar Hernandez to its 19-member Board of Directors. In this capacity, Hernandez will help guide Housing Trust Fund VC as the local trusted leader helping to increase affordable housing options throughout Ventura County by leveraging public-private partnerships to provide low-cost, flexible loans early in the housing development cycle.
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“I believe that housing is not only essential for the economic sustainability of our community, but also an opportunity to allow families to thrive and be successful,” stated Cesar Hernandez, board member of Housing Trust Fund VC. “The challenges we face in addressing the housing crisis requires us to rise to the occasion as a community. Joining Housing Trust Fund VC is one way that I can do my part to make safe, affordable, quality housing a right for everyone.”

“My family benefitted from the availability of affordable housing in our community.” – Cesar Hernandez

Hernandez joins the Board with a stellar social justice background. He is currently the Senior Field Organizer for Economic Justice at the Washington DC based Community Change, dedicated to building the power and capacity of low-income people, especially low-income people of color, to change the policies and institutions that impact their lives. Hernandez is also actively involved within the local community serving on the McCune Foundation’s Social Change Institute’s Advisory Committee and is a co-founder of City Corps of Oxnard, a youth leadership and service-learning program that provides job training and life skills for low income and young people of color. He has also led youth development and health education efforts at El Concilio del Condado de Ventura, was the Director of the Central Coast Environmental Health Project (CCEHP) for California Rural Legal Assistance (CRLA) and a founding member of the Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy (CAUSE).

“Cesar is an impressive individual,” said Housing Trust Fund VC Board Chair Jennie Buckingham. “Between his private sector work as Director of Corporate Social Responsibility for Reiter Affiliated, the largest fresh berry grower in the world, to his many community endeavors advocating for low-income people, Cesar brings a valuable perspective to our Board.” Leading labor strategy efforts to improve earning, working, and living conditions for over 20,000 harvesters in the U.S, Hernandez led the company’s philanthropic giving and supply chain responsibility efforts in both the U.S. and Mexico. His work earned him the position of Fellow with the California Agricultural Leadership Foundation.
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Originally from Guadalajara, Mexico, Cesar Hernandez immigrated with his family to the United States in the late 1970’s and was raised in Oxnard. “As a kid growing up in Colonia Village, a public housing project built and managed by the City of Oxnard, my community was always a source of inspiration,” commented Hernandez. “My success is directly linked to the stability that affordable housing provided to my parents. I remember feeling lucky to have my own bedroom, where I could study and dream about what I could become and where I wanted to go in the world. It is my hope that we can all work together to help more families thrive and it starts with a safe place to call home.”