b'1978Self-Help Enterprisesspurs Rural CommunityAssistance Corporations creation Self-Help Enterprises (SHE) was formed in 1965,In response, SHE created Rural Community Assis-as an outgrowth of American Friends Servicetance Corporation, which originated in California Committee in Visalia, California. The organiza- but gradually took on water projects in Arizona, tion at the time was affiliated with the NationalIdaho, Oregon, Nevada and Washington.Demonstration Water Project. The U.S. Depart- In June 1979, RCAC received its first operational ment of Health and Human Services recognizedgrant under the Rural Community Assistance the need to expand national efforts to the ruralPartnership, worth $600,000 per year. In the West, where communities increasingly neededfiscal year ending Sept. 30, 1980, 23 agencies assistance with their water, wastewater and solidshared $242,000 in pass-through funds under waste infrastructure. To address these needs, theRCAP. The largest subcontract was with SHE for agency appointed SHE among six other organi- $29,790. zations to expand its services in the West.First self-helpIn its first two years RCAC grew from one staff member to nearly 30. U.S. Department of 1980 Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development Mutual contractSelf-Help Housing was a major program area for RCAC. USDA contracted with regional agencies to provide management and development services to its network of 523 funded self-help agencies. In 1980, RCAC won its first major competitively-awarded contract, which allowed it to provide training and technical assistance to all existing self-help grantees in the rural West. Today, RCAC works with more than 45 self-help housing agencies in 10 western states and the Pacific islands. RCAC 2019 Annual Report|3'