02/20/2026
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FreshHope Workforce Development Ecosystem® and Financial Pathways of the PiedmontAnnounce Strategic Partnership to Create Winston-Salem’s First Fully Integrated Pathway from Employment to Homeownership.
Winston-Salem, NC — February 20, 2026 — a transformative new partnership between the Fresh Hope Workforce Development Ecosystem® and Financial Pathways of the Piedmont is establishing Winston-Salem’s first fully integrated pathway guiding residents from unemployment and underemployment to long-term financial stability and homeownership. Rooted in the shared declaration—
“Winston-Salem’s first fully integrated pathway from unemployment andunderemployment to homeownership—combining workforce training, financialstability, and long-term wealth creation.”
—This collaboration moves beyond inspiration into measurable, structural changefor individuals, families, and neighborhoods across Winston-Salem, fosteringcommunity pride and shared progress.
Unlike traditional workforce initiatives that stop at job placement, this coordinated model ensures that every participant entering Fresh Hope’s transformation ecosystem simultaneously engages in financial restoration and asset-building services through Financial Pathways of the Piedmont. Employment becomes the startingpoint, not the destination. Participants rebuild credit, reduce debt, establish savings, and prepare for homeownership while advancing in career, certifications, and job
placement.
This partnership arrives at a pivotal moment as Fresh Hope scales from a cohort of 38 participants launched in November 2025 to an anticipated 300-participant cohort in November 2026, dramatically expanding its citywide economic impact.
Citywide Impact Beyond Individual Success.
This synchronized model is designedto shift outcomes across Winston-Salem/Forsyth County: Stronger, more reliable workforce pipelines for employers, Increased credit scores and reduced consumer debt, expanded savings and first-time homeownership, greater neighborhood stability, and reduced strain on public systems
What begins as a participant journey becomes a community-wide economic transformation—one that is measurable across employment, wages, credit, debt, savings, and housing stability.
Equally significant, the partnership establishes a replicable framework that can attract sustained public, private, and philanthropic investment, inspiring confidence in Winston-Salem's potential as a national model for economic mobility.
Leadership Perspective:
Leaders from both organizations affirm that true economic mobility must be intentional, integrated, and respectful of residents' dignity, expanding opportunity and opening pathways to homeownership that have historically been out of reach for many residents.
Together, Fresh Hope and Financial Pathways are not only strengthening programs—they are changing life trajectories and shaping Winston-Salem’s economic future for generations to come.
Media Contact
Fresh Hope Workforce Development Ecosystem®
Bishop John C. Parks
President, New Hope Resource Center of Winston Salem, Inc.
704-232-3993
[email protected]
newhoperesourcecenterwinstonsalem.org
Financial Pathways of the Piedmont
Sharon Thomas
Housing Director, Financial Pathways of the Piedmont
336-837-0642
[email protected]
financialpaths.org
About Fresh Hope WorkforceDevelopment Ecosystem®
Fresh Hope is a comprehensive workforce transformation ecosystem that equips marginalized, unemployed, justice-involved, and underemployed residents with behavioral skills, industry certifications, and career pathways that lead to high-value employment, entrepreneurship, and long-term economic mobility.
About Financial Pathways of thePiedmont
Financial Pathways of the Piedmont provides trusted financial counseling, education, and coaching services that help individuals reduce debt, build savings, improve credit, and achieve lasting financial stability and homeownership readiness.
