Executive Director
bdorpalen@hsgcenter.org
Bruce has directed housing counseling programs since 1985, negotiated community reinvestment partnerships with over 40 banks, developed models for low income mortgage underwriting which were used extensively by the industry, and created community-based outreach and education programs for minority, lower income, single parent, immigrant and other underserved populations. These programs provided affordable mortgages to over 110,000 families in 30 cities across the country. In the foreclosure crisis, he designed counseling programs which assisted over 75,000 delinquent homeowners and increased the communication between housing counselors and mortgage servicers. He also developed programs for homeowners devastated after Hurricane Katrina, anti-predatory lending programs, refinance programs, and homeowners insurance programs.
Prior to 1985, Bruce worked as a community organizer in Philadelphia, Atlanta, Greensboro, NC, Raleigh, NC, Brockton, MA, and Providence, RI. Bruce also spent a year as a public interest lobbyist and advocate on housing and utility reform issues with Connecticut Citizen Action Group. Bruce graduated with honors from Brown University with a BA in Urban Studies in 1974.
Deputy Director
epepper@hsgcenter.org
She coordinated training and technical assistance for HUD-approved housing counseling agencies funded under HOPP and built bridges to key stakeholders in support of their work. Prior to joining the Empire Justice Center, she was the Deputy Director of Better Neighborhoods, Inc., a nonprofit, HUD-approved homeownership center providing housing counseling services and developing affordable housing. She coordinated and provided direct services for first-time homebuyers, homeowners in danger of losing their homes, and residents hardest hit by the foreclosure crisis in three rural counties of upstate New York. She also worked closely with residents of low-income urban neighborhoods around revitalization efforts and, as a result, is intimately aware of the needs of people living in these neighborhoods.
Eboni Cartwright
Administrative Manager
ecartwright@hsgcenter.org
Eboni Cartwright has extensive customer service experience and a passion for all things nonprofit. She brings knowledge and experience working with a donor management database, managing multiple social media platforms, marketing and fundraising, and program development. She created Reach Philadelphia, a successful nonprofit organization dedicated to cultivating creative and performing arts for children in underserved neighborhoods throughout Philadelphia. This has given her a deep understanding of successful non-profit engagement strategies. Eboni holds a BS in General Studies from Drexel University and has completed her first year of the Drexel Masters of Science program in Nonprofit Management.