It is not every day that you can support a CEDAM member by eating chocolate, and it’s not too late to do so: Underground Railroad Inc.’s Chocolate Lovers Benefit is Sunday the 31st in Saginaw. Attendees will get to sample chocolates and other novelties from local shops, see a live performance by Walt Evans, and participate in a silent auction. See more information and RSVP online or pay at the door.

Alger-Marquette Community Action Board’s weatherization program, which is free to income-eligible households in the area, saves homeowners an average of 24% on energy costs. Joe Pirante, the housing director at AMCAB, says that in many cases the biggest factor in energy savings is the home’s heating system itself. Having a heating contractor clean and tune the system every few years will improve efficiency. More in this news article.

Ingham County Land Bank will be one of the eight land banks aided by NSP2 grant money awarded to Michigan for neighborhood revitalization. News article.

Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries received a tremendous donation of furniture from Art Van Furniture, who partnered with the daytime drama “Days of our Lives” and local NBC affiliate WDIV Channel 4. Read more.

Southwest Housing Solutions Corp received $4 million from the U.S. Department of Labor’s ‘Pathways out of Poverty’ training grant. The grant money will be used to train disadvantaged Detroit residents for green jobs in areas such as weatherization, deconstruction and material reuse, renewable energy, forestry, and urban agriculture. Go here for more on Pathways out of Poverty, or see Southwest Solutions’ article.