Jeffrey Rupp, Executive Director

32 South Tracy Avenue
Bozeman, MT 59715

Phone: (406) 587-4486
Fax: (406) 585-3538
hrdcjr@aol.com

Incorporated: 1975

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Photos by Rob Wilke

In 1995 Colleen and her son Tim were living in the Heritage Apartments, a rent-subsidized housing complex in Bozeman. While Heritage offered low rent, it offered very little else. The apartment they were in was small, dark, and depressing. Colleen's son, Tim, was born with multiple birth defects that often required her to stay home or take him to medical appointments. Colleen needed an employer who could offer a flexible schedule and benefits. Needless to say, that was hard to come by. Their only income came from Supplemental Social Security benefits for Tim and sporadic child support.

With encouragement from a Human Resource Development Council of District IX (HRDC) Housing Advocate, Colleen applied for a job with HRDC's newly formed Resource Property Management. She landed a job cleaning apartments and doing general maintenance. When a site manager position at HRDC's West Babcock Apartments opened up, Colleen finally found her way out of the Heritage Apartments. The job came with a brand new 2-bedroom apartment. Soon Colleen was working maintaining tenant files and processing housing applications.

Although she still needed help through HRDC's rental assistance program and Low Income Energy Assistance Program, she knew self-sufficiency was close. She set goals for herself, and HRDC helped give her the confidence and tools to meet those goals.
Today, Colleen works full time as HRDC's Data Entry Specialist. She receives minimal help with her rent, and is for home ownership. She no longer needs help paying her monthly utility bills and serves on the Low Income Energy Assistance Programs Community Advisory Board. Tim has also benefited from the family's relationship with HRDC: he is enrolled in HRDC's Youth Development Program, and this summer he will begin learning employment skills.