HOPE Global Financial Dignity Summit to Include Working Group Session Focused on Wealth and Home Ownership

Financial Inclusion Working Group to be Co-Chaired by Topic Experts from HUD and the Financial Services Roundtable

Atlanta – October 15, 2013 – (RealEstateRama) — Today, Operation HOPE (HOPE), the leading global financial dignity nonprofit, announced that Ed Jennings of Southeast Region Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and John H. Dalton, former Secretary of the Navy and current President of the Housing Policy Counsel for the Financial Services Roundtable will co-chair the upcoming HOPE Global Financial Dignity Summit (Summit) working group session titled, “Building Wealth through Homeownership, Post Crisis.” The Summit will be hosted from the Georgia International Convention Center in Atlanta, Georgia, on November 13 and 14.

Jennings and Secretary Dalton will lead a group discussion with other industry leaders, experts and Summit delegates about how individuals can build personal and community wealth through homeownership following the financial crisis and develop a list of recommendations on this important topic from the working group session that will be included in a post-event executive report for G20 leaders.

At this session, participants will highlight how the current financial services market and the real estate market creates an ideal time for Americans to pursue homeownership, especially in working class and underserved communities. Amidst this period of cleanup and recovery, a new window of opportunity is presenting itself for those who previously may have stayed on the sidelines. And regional banks are particularly well positioned to support new entrants into the marketplace and to capitalize on this situation because of their competitive advantages including a rediscovered status as trusted providers, deeper market knowledge and customer ties, and dense distribution systems within desirable regional markets.

“As America continues to emerge from a deep financial crisis, new opportunities also exist for those in underserved communities who were previously left behind by the system. This working group will analyze the current situation and identify solutions to ensure that these new populations of working class Americans are able to capitalize on the advantages that lie before them,” said John Hope Bryant, founder, chairman and CEO of Operation HOPE. “There is no better time than now to have to conduct this critical dialogue and that discussion will be enriched by the leadership of Secretary Dalton and Ed Jennings.”

Prior to accepting the appointment as the HUD Southeast Regional Administrator, Ed Jennings service in the Florida House garnered several awards including being named one of Florida Trend Magazine’s Top Seven Freshman in the Legislature, and Affordable Housing Advocate of the Year. Throughout his legislative career, he served on various committees including the Vice Chair of Community Colleges and Workforce Development; Commerce Council; Transportation and Economic Development Appropriations Committee; and the Insurance Committee. Jennings founded his real estate development firm in 1997 which became an economic vehicle for revitalizing East Gainesville. His professional experience includes development, construction, acquisition, and property management of varied property types. They include: low income housing tax credit housing, single family modular housing, transitional housing, mixed use property, and commercial/retail space. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science with a minor in Spanish from the University of Florida. During his tenure at the University of Florida, he also served as President of Florida’s most prestigious leadership honorary, Florida Blue Key.

John Dalton graduated with distinction from Annapolis in 1964 and was a Rhodes Scholar finalist during his academic career there. After graduating from Annapolis, Dalton served in the Navy from 1964 to 1969. After leaving the Navy, Dalton ran the San Antonio, Texas office of the Little Rock, Arkansas-based Stephens Inc. investment banking firm. Prior to his employment at Stephens Inc., he was Managing Director of Best Associates and Mason Best Company, merchant banking firms headquartered in Houston and Dallas respectively. President Carter nominated Dalton to the Federal Home Loan Bank Board in December 1979, where he served as a member and chairman until July 1981. Dalton was also President of the Government National Mortgage Association of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development before being appointed to the Bank Board. President Clinton appointed Dalton as the 70th Secretary of the Navy, a position in which he served from 1993 to 1996. Since January 2005, Dalton has been President of the Housing Policy Council at The Financial Services Roundtable.

In partnership with the City of Atlanta, the two-day summit, moderated by Soledad O’Brien “Global Economic Recovery: How The Poor Can Help Save Capitalism,” (summit.operationhope.org) will frame the issue of financial inclusion, small business, entrepreneurship, jobs, and financial dignity as essential core ingredients to mid and long-term economic recovery and stability. It is expected to draw 1,000 of the most dynamic and influential financial industry professionals, government decision-makers and faith leaders from more than 50 countries around the world.

To learn more about Operation HOPE and the 2013 Summit, visit www.operationhope.org, follow us our Twitter, @operationhope #HOPESummit, and like us on Facebook.

About Operation HOPE

Operation HOPE (HOPE) is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting financial literacy and dignity through various educational programs and initiatives. Since its inception in 1992, HOPE has served more than 2 million individuals, directed more than $1.5 billion in private capital to America’s low-wealth communities, maintains a growing army of 20,000 HOPE Corps volunteers, has raised average credit scores for financial case management clients more than 120 points over an average 18-month period, and currently serves more than 300 U.S. cities, as well as South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, and most recently, the United Arab Emirates. At its core is a “silver rights” mission to make free enterprise and capitalism work for everyone. To learn more about Operation HOPE, visit www.operationhope.org, follow us on Twitter, @operationhope, #HOPESummit, and like us on Facebook.