Gene Kuthy AwardGene Kuthy believed in people and the organizations they created. He always wanted to be a part of those organizations that were designed by, and served, our most vulnerable populations and communities. With these efforts, he was a consummate board member.
He helped to form CEDAM in 1998, seeing the need to create a statewide organization to serve the community economic development industry and being one of our original board members. He also served on a number of other boards, including Southwest Solutions and several other CDCs in Detroit.
A retired Navy Reserve Captain, art lover and former head of the Financial Institutions Bureau, Gene could have chosen to spend his time in any number of places, but he chose us and for that, we will be eternally grateful.
He was a champion for the community economic development field – helping to create a voice for fair housing, “making banking more friendly” and lending credibility to our industry. He chose CEDAM and its mission as his cause, and CEDAM benefitted greatly because of that choice.
To honor Gene’s legacy, CEDAM is honoring a current or former board member of a CEDAM member who embodies Gene’s positive and unique attributes: fun, larger than life, generous, an incredible networker, a champion of a particular program and more. The nomination application can be found here; nominations are due September 29.
The Gene Kuthy award will be presented at this year’s Destination: Vibrant Communities & Financial Empowerment Summit at the Greektown Hotel & Conference Center November 14-15.
If you are interested in attending the award ceremony but not the conference, you can buy a table or individual place here.