By Mary-Frances Makichen, RMLS™ Communications Specialist

A couple of weeks ago I had the privilege of participating as a judge for the Fair Housing Council of Oregon’s (FHCO) annual poster contest. This annual contest is open to children in first through eighth grade. Entry is free and prizes are awarded for the winning submissions. The theme this year was, “Fair Housing Welcomes Everyone.”

It was amazing to see all the creativity that kids poured into their entries. Better yet, it was fun to note that kids want fair housing for everyone including dogs, cats, rabbits and turtles. It’s gratifying that this contest gets children thinking about the idea of fair housing and inclusiveness at an early age.

This was the first time I had judged the contest but many of the other judges have done so for years. In the course of our time together they talked about how even many adults don’t understand the mission of FHCO.

Here is a brief description of the work carried out by FHCO in their own words:

The Fair Housing Council of Oregon (FHCO) is a statewide civil rights organization whose mission is to eliminate housing discrimination through access to enforcement and education. We are a nonprofit corporation, not a governmental agency.

We promote equal access to housing by providing education, outreach, technical assistance, and enforcement opportunities specifically related to federal, state, and local fair housing laws.

In the end we were all very pleased with the grand prize winner that was chosen. If you want to know more about FHCO please visit www.fhco.org