Nora El-Khouri Spencer, founder and CEO of Hope Renovations in Carrboro, has been named a 2022 CNN Hero.

This honor is bestowed upon stand-out people in all 50 states and 110 countries for making an impact in their own communities and beyond. Spencer was chosen for her “achievements and vision,” according to a press release from the nonprofit.

“There are no words to describe how meaningful this honor is, especially as such a young organization,” said Spencer. “We are changing the world, one graduate at a time, one client at a time, and to have our impact recognized by CNN in this way is a dream come true. On behalf of everyone who makes Hope happen – our amazing team, our board, our partners, our community and, of course, our wonderful clients and graduates – we are endlessly grateful.”

Hope Renovations offers a pre-apprenticeship program for underemployed women who seek a rewarding and profitable career in the trades, and offers hands-on practice by helping seniors in our community Age-In-Place through improvements and modifications to their homes.

The initial sparks of Hope Renovations were ignited while Spencer was working in Human Resources for Lowe’s Hardware. She became an avid DIY-er (thanks, employee discount!) and as she began to work on more projects outside of just her own, it became clear there were not nearly enough women in the trades. Spencer went on to learn of the sizeable gap between the need to help seniors Age-in-Place, and the resources to actually do so. These two passions were combined to create Hope Renovations in Summer of 2022, and since then they have graduated nearly 10 cohorts of women.

Spencer notes to CNN that Hope Renovations is more than just education, explaining they’re “providing hope to the people that we serve… We’re helping them renovate their lives.”

Before Nora was a CNN Hero, she was a Hometown Hero and a Woman Crush Wednesday feature right here on Chapelboro!

If you are looking for a way to support Hope Renovations and celebrate with Nora, you can purchase tickets here to their upcoming Summer Soiree on June 16th. Taking place at The Story venue on Franklin Street, the Summer Soiree offers a night of fun — hors d’oeuvres catered by Mediterranean Deli, DJ and dancing, pool tournament, cash bar, a silent auction, and a photo booth.

Congratulations to Nora Spencer, and the entire team at Hope Renovations, on becoming a CNN Hero!

Read Nora’s full feature on CNN.

 

Featured photo courtesy of bizjournals.com

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