Solid Ground history

In 1993, East Metro Place opened its doors, providing affordable housing and supportive programs to twenty families experiencing homelessness, where they could stay for up to two years while they worked towards self-sufficiency.

Solid Ground has also been a nominee for several awards, including a Best Practices Award from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and was written into the Congressional Record for Excellence and Innovation in 1995 (as East Metro Women’s Council).

Other employment stints include United Way and Oregon Wild (then known as the Oregon Natural Resource Council). And in 1999, Marc guided the rollout and start-up of what is now Oregon’s fourth largest nonprofit organization, the Energy Trust of Oregon.

A committed bicycle commuter, Allison Handler embraced the chance to race a tandem bicycle with a master’s national tandem champion in Eugene, Oregon, in 2001.

After nearly 14 years as agency principal, he sold his business in 2006 to move his work into supporting organizations committed to social equity and environmental sustainability.

Since 2007, Allison has worked with nonprofit organizations and local governments on strategic planning, organizational assessment, business development, fundraising planning and financial feasibility.

Dori has been with Solid Ground since it began in 2008.

He retired from MLR in 2009 and since then, has been a Consulting Partner, working with a variety of clients mostly in the resource/conversation world.

2011 Minnesota Nonprofit Award for Excellence in a Small Organization

She eventually landed in Washington, D.C., where she got a first-hand look at how laws are made (yes, she says, it’s very much like making sausage). Heading back west, she spent 20 years in the Bay Area before returning to her home state in 2013.