In April 1975, a public forum brought together Arlington community leaders, housing advocates, and county officials, all seeking solutions to the county’s growing affordable housing crisis. What emerged from that gathering would become AHC — originally Arlington Housing Corporation, now known as Affordable Homes & Communities — an organization that has spent the past 50 years proving affordable housing is about far more than four walls and a roof.
Among those who helped bring AHC to life was Terri Lynch, who served on Arlington’s Housing Commission in the early 1970s.
“I was one of the midwives,” Terri said of her role in AHC’s founding.
The need for the organization arose from a unique challenge. Arlington voters had rejected creating a public housing authority, yet the county needed a way to receive Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) federal funds for affordable housing. The solution was to create a nonprofit that could receive those funds and develop housing for residents living on lower incomes.
The forum brought together key figures who would shape AHC’s future: Ellen Bozman, a county board member; Jim Hunter, who became AHC’s first board chair; advocate Ethel Yabroff; and Jennie Davis, former President of the Nauck (now Green Valley) Civic Association.
“It was really very exciting. We knew there was this great need for affordable housing, as there is today, and Arlington did not have any vehicle to start to try and address that need.”
– Terri Lynch, AHC Co-Founder
The early years were “hand to mouth because there really was very little money to go on,” Terri said.
In 1978, the organization hired Lou Ann Frederick as Executive Director. The small organization focused on survival, ensuring that investments of federal and county dollars were secure, and reinvesting resources into new housing. In particular, in the Green Valley neighborhood, AHC administered a program to help families make necessary home repairs.
Kathy Desmond arrived at AHC in 1982, seeking a nonprofit dedicated to empowering people living on lower incomes. She found an organization whose mission resonated with her values.
“The overriding theme is — from the beginning I and other like-minded people thought AHC was always more than just about housing — that AHC was about building healthy communities, enabling residents to thrive.”
– Kathy Desmond, Former Board Member
Over the next two decades, Kathy served in numerous leadership capacities, including as board president and as a member of five individual property boards. She witnessed the organization’s evolution from focusing on cooperatives and homeownership to developing rental multifamily housing — a shift driven by practical needs and funding realities.
“This gradually changed to rental multifamily housing, because it was more viable and would help more people,” Kathy said.
A major turning point came with the founding of the Resident Services program in 1993. What started as basic activities for children at Woodbury Park Apartments has grown into comprehensive programming serving thousands of residents annually. Terri said it “was an important pivot.”
“The goal was to create housing for people who did not have an affordable place to live. Arlington residents were rent burdened going back all these 50 years,” Terri said. “And the big addition that was really welcome and important was to focus not only on the building itself but building community within the building.”
By the time AHC celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2016, the organization had grown far beyond its Arlington roots, expanding into Alexandria, Fairfax County, Montgomery County, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C. The name officially changed from Arlington Housing Corporation to AHC Inc., and is now known as Affordable Homes & Communities, reflecting its regional reach.
Both women have remained connected to AHC throughout the decades. Terri has been a donor for 50 years and served on various committees. Kathy, also a donor, continued her board service until 2003 and in 2013 began volunteering as a tutor for AHC’s Resident Services program, a role she continues today.
“It’s really rewarding to see that the students who go through AHC’s high school tutoring program all go to college and many earn a degree — they’re our hope for the future,” Kathy said.
Today, Kathy and Terri are also part of a group called the Housing Ladies who meet regularly with Paul Bernard, AHC’s President & CEO, to share their insights from decades of experience.
“It’s always a joy to be around folks who understand and appreciate the mission of what we do at a very deep level — folks who’ve been around to help me understand the history and how that translates into the future, “ Paul said.
Kathy said she looks forward to meeting with Paul every month.
“However I can help him, my job is … to be supportive, addressing whatever issue or topic he brings. And he always has something to bring,” Kathy said. “Generally, I see myself as a cheerleader for his work, and I will add my two cents when it seems like it makes sense to do so.”
Reflecting on AHC’s longevity, Terri pointed to the organization’s unwavering consistency.
“Whenever there was a housing need, you could count on AHC to be there working on it.”
– Terri Lynch, AHC Co-Founder
To see the organization reach 50 years, Kathy said she’s proud.
“That’s like seeing my grandkids, who I knew as babies, now graduating from college,” she said.
In her experience, it’s rare “for a nonprofit to live this long and prosper — to make the changes that had to accompany this impressive growth from a small local nonprofit to being a regional nonprofit leader.”
Looking back on 50 years, Terri views AHC’s legacy as “the number of affordable [homes], the start of a strong affordable housing advocacy network in the county and in the region, and now the strong emphasis of community building.”
Today, AHC serves more than 20,000 residents across its 56 communities in the mid-Atlantic region. The organization’s commitment to keeping residents at the heart of its mission — the vision that motivated that first gathering in 1975 — remains the driving force.
Stay tuned for more special content and ways you can be part of this historic year.
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