When it comes to community journalism, the team knows that housing plays a critical role in making the community resilient.

That's why, when our team decided to dedicate some time to an ambitious metro-wide project, we focused on the history, the challenges and the solutions to this crisis in our communities.

As the largest community news organization in the Denver metro area, it is our desire to be a trusted community resource and where readers turn first for stories and events that impact them most.

Our group will allocate proceeds from this program in a number of ways:

- We are partnering with the Denver Voice, a publication dedicated to supporting the unhoused members of our communities. Being able to cover the newsprint costs that group would incur in printing/publishing would be beneficial to both of our organizations.

- While we've held a number of focus groups in our communities, our outreach among residents who do not speak English has been limited. We'd direct some funds to ensuring that we can fund translation services to hear their views as well.

- Our staffers are required to be everything for their communities: editors, reporters, photographers, videographers. Being able to hire a freelance visual journalist to work this project would offer critical support for our current staffers and provide additional impact for our reporting.

- Our goal is to publish these reports in print and online (in front of our paywall), in English and Spanish, as applicable. Being able to financially support that goal would bolster our efforts to make the journalism accessible to all.

- After publication, we intend to hold town hall meetings in each region to continue the conversation. Funding can be put toward acquiring venues, providing refreshments and offering A/V capabilities to record these events and offer virtual/hybrid opportunities.

The 2022 Local News Fund is a program administered by Local Media Foundation (LMF), a 501(c)(3) organization affiliated with Local Media Association. The purpose of the program is to allow independent and family-owned news organizations to solicit tax-deductible donations from their communities for journalism projects that focus on critical local issues. Contributions to this program are tax-deductible to the full extent of U.S. law; please consult a tax advisor for details.