Fahe is a regional nonprofit financial intermediary based in Berea, Kentucky, that works to build the American Dream for every family and community across Appalachia. Since 1980, Fahe has connected investment capital and other resources to “boots on the ground” leadership through its network of more than 50 member organizations across six states. A case study describes Fahe as “the strongest example of network approaches to increasing impact and strengthening financial performance in the domestic community development field.” The rationale for a network approach – economies of scale, shared resources, and functional specialization – is especially important in rural Appalachia, an underbanked region that has endured generations of industrial extraction and economic disinvestment. By collectively pooling community venture assets, best practices, and shared expertise, local community developers and advocates can amplify their impact. Fahe’s network model brings together diverse local stakeholders from CDFIs, community development corporations (CDCs), community action agencies, housing authorities, and religious coalitions to make transformational community investments in neighborhood infrastructure, workforce development, public health, economic revitalization, and quality affordable housing. In the early 2000s, Fahe’s annual production was 2,000 units of housing and $5 million in financing. While impressive, it was woefully inadequate for the region’s challenges. Members created a performance compact to share core competencies and free themselves from administrative functions. By 2009, they had doubled housing production and increased financing four-fold. A decade later, during 2020, Fahe made direct investments totaling $145.6 million and oversaw $268 million in capital under management for its members and aligned organizations. Since 1980, the powerful Fahe network has changed the lives of 687,183 people.

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