By Elisabeth Youngerman, Development Consultant to Mutual Housing Association of Southwestern Connecticut, Inc.

Trumbull, Connecticut has a population of 34,000 and a median household income of $79,500. Only five percent of its households are classified as minority and less than two percent have incomes below the poverty level.

Of the 43 low- to moderate-income families moving into Trumbull Townhomes, eight are black, two are Hispanic, and five are Pacific Asian. Other families are from South Asia and Eastern Europe.

Many times, Fair Housing Plans are something you just submit with a funding application. But the thought you give them makes all the difference in creating a great community.

We started by marketing to groups in Greater Bridgeport that might attract low-income people who could be home owners with our support. Carol Sydnor, MHA's director of homeownership, developed an orientation program for prospective buyers, and we held it at places like Career Resources in Bridgeport.

We also called all the employers in Trumbull. We could not get one to let us hold seminars. So we sent information packages and asked them to put up flyers in their cafeterias. It was very hard to explain affordable housing to human resources officers.

I went to the Trumbull Marriott. The chef, who happened to be out front, took flyers back to the kitchen and passed them out to the employees. I heard a radio interview with a woman who runs a program for schools in Trumbull and neighboring suburbs that takes kids from Bridgeport. I called her, and she took information packages for all of her families.

What we learned is that many of the people who work in Trumbull live in Bridgeport. So it takes a lot of legwork. It's not a telephone thing. To make Fair Housing meaningful, you have to get in the car, you have to walk and talk with people.

We also strove to keep the application process very positive. We concentrated on one thing: What is the message of Trumbull Townhomes?

For many of the new owners, living in Trumbull is a chance to live without crime, to send their children to excellent schools, and to experience the joy of living in a diverse community of eager families.