The American Dream Placed Within Reach
As a waitress for an Inglewood soul food restaurant, Normene Woods found it difficult to save money being a single mother with two teenage sons at home.
With a monthly income of about $1,400 including tips, Woods qualified for rental assistance on her three-bedroom apartment. Her goal to buy a residence seemed out of reach.
But a partnership between the city’s housing authority and United Way of Greater Los Angeles helped Woods save enough to buy a $155,000 condominium near her workplace in 2003.
“If you had told me a few years ago that I’d be owning a home, I wouldn’t have believed you,” said Woods, who also has an adult daughter. “This is mine. I have something. If anything should happen to me, I can leave this to my kids.”
Woods was among the first of nearly 900 people to benefit from United Way’s Saving for the American Dream program, which helps the working poor improve their lives by providing financial education and cash incentives to save money for a home, start a business or attend college or a trade school.
United Way contributes $2 for every $1 saved, up to $1,800 for a home purchase and up to $1,000 for education and small-business projects.
Nearly two-thirds of the people in the Saving for the American Dream program are women; 63% are either single, widowed, divorced or separated; and 95% are minorities. To qualify, a participant cannot earn more than $19,140 for one person or more than $38,700 for a family of four. Those figures are twice the federal poverty guidelines.
The program, affiliated with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Assets for Independence initiative, is overseen by a cadre of successful career women dedicated to reducing poverty in Los Angeles County.
“Poverty is the root of all evil,” said Diane B. Dixon, chairwoman of United Way’s Women Leaders Bridging the Gap. “These women bring tears to your eyes. Their lives are changed and, more importantly, the lives of their children have changed. The stability helps families move themselves out of poverty.”
Dixon, senior vice president for worldwide communications and advertising at Pasadena-based Avery Dennison Corp., is a United Way board member who took the helm of the female leaders group three years ago. Initial membership required donations of at least $10,000 annually to United Way, a figure that has been reduced to $2,500.
Dixon’s efforts with the group, which has 41 members, have generated about $540,000 in United Way donations since 2002.
“She didn’t see herself as a fundraiser, but we saw her passion
“She’s a very successful career woman, very analytical and strategic,” Buik said. “It’s nice to take her knowledge and translate that into a passion to transform people’s lives.”
Along with her United Way commitment, Dixon, 53, is on the boards of the Los Angeles chapter of the ALS Assn. and the USC Alumni Assn., and she is on the Women’s Leadership Board at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
As a result of her community involvement and charitable giving, Dixon has been selected for a Legacy Award as Philanthropist of the Year, which will be presented at a luncheon Friday by the National Assn. of Women Business Owners in Los Angeles.
“What we’re trying to say is that to be a successful woman entrepreneur, you have to learn to give back, in terms of time and resources, and to build a legacy for people behind you to follow. Diane is a role model for us in this respect,” said Helen Han, executive director of the women business owners group.
Renee White Fraser, a member of the United Way women leaders group and the business owners organization, said Dixon inspired other women to better the community.
“She’s compassionate and a true leader. She’s very inclusive, approachable and she believes in the spirit and capacity of women,” said Fraser, who owns an advertising agency in Santa Monica.
Dixon believes that more career women would donate time and money to charities, especially those assisting other women and children, if they were asked.
“There’s a different type of emotional involvement that women in philanthropy bring with them. Women relate to the maternal needs of female single heads of households trying to raise a family. It’s an emotional connection,” Dixon said.
“It’s more than writing a check. It’s seeing where your dollars are having an impact and making a positive difference.”
Woods said she collected aluminum cans, held yard sales and scrimped on luxuries to save nearly $3,500 toward the down payment on the two-bedroom condo she acquired in August 2003. Similar units in her complex are now valued as much as $60,000 more than what she paid.
Having her own home, Woods said, puts her “on a different level in life.”
Sylvia Ordaz, a single mother of six, has saved about $1,000 in the two years she has been in the program. Ordaz learned in January that the Culver City home furnishings store where she works is set to close at the end of this month.
She plans to use her money, along with $2,000 from United Way, to launch her company, The Angel’s Dream, which will sell men’s clothing accessories through a network of churches.
“Having my own business is like a dream for me. And when you have a dream, nothing is impossible,” Ordaz said.
Her parents and several aunts had retail shops in her native Mexico. She said her grandfather started as a street vendor before opening his first store.
“I think it’s better when you start from the bottom,” she said. “You learn more and you appreciate it more.”
