DETROIT – At just six weeks old, Dina Harris was adopted by a low-income senior citizen. This was the start of a life spent in public housing, but the catalyst to Harris’ life’s work.

A nurturing high school staff essentially “adopted” Harris, providing her with driving lessons along with many other life skills. Her high school teachers stepped up and helped her succeed, pushing her to attend a charter school and get her involved in foreign exchange programs and the Stratford Program.

Harris credits her experience of being raised in low-income housing by a senior citizen and the experiences she was given thanks to her high school teachers as the reason she started National Faith Homebuyers, a 501c3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to help people purchase and stay in their homes, founded in 1996.

“What I learned along the way is how to use my imagination to solve problems; whatever I take on I look at it from a different perspective than the world has already tried,” Harris said. “I designed a program to be user friendly because I grew up in a world where people that are poor aren’t treated very well. So, I decided anything we did had to give people their dignity, had to help them find their hope.”

Harris is the second 2024 honoree of the Game Changers series, which celebrates community members making a profound difference for youth in Detroit. In partnership with Comerica Bank, the Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Tigers will recognize one Game Changers honoree per week during select months throughout the year to receive a $1,000 grant dedicated to the charity of their choice.

“For her passionate work positively impacting hundreds of residents each year locally and abroad, we’re pleased to celebrate Dina Harris as a Game Changers honoree,” said Ilitch Sports + Entertainment director of community impact Kevin Brown. “Through her National Faith Home Buyers, Dina is ensuring people of all backgrounds receive the personalized resources and support they need to accomplish one of life’s major milestones – homeownership.”

Harris was instrumental in the creation of the Ypsilanti Section 8 housing program, a program where federally assisted rental housing properties are available for eligible individuals and families at a deep discount and her organization, National Faith Homebuyers, has helped more than 10,000 families purchase a home or continue to stay in their home in Michigan.

“When we teach home ownership, we also teach entrepreneurship, financial literacy and how to build wealth,” Harris said. “I try to teach all of my staff everything I’ve learned and all the people who come through our programs everything I can so there are eventually millions of people who have the same knowledge I do, so if I leave tomorrow, the good work we’ve started can keep going.”

Harris credits her team, some who have been with her for almost 50 years, for sticking with her and helping National Faith Homebuyers accomplish all it has, and she said she’s excited to be recognized by the Red Wings and Tigers.

“I am thrilled, and I think I’m kind of shocked, because, my God, these are the Red Wings and the Ilitch family I’ve been reading about all my life,” Harris said. “I dreamed of changing hundreds of lives, not three, not four, not 10; that was my game plan from Day One. I came to Detroit because I wanted to be able to serve more than 10 people and last year, we helped almost 500 people get into home ownership. I’m just amazed and thankful the city of Detroit trusted me enough to let me do this.”

To learn more about National Faith Homebuyers, visit NationalFaith.org.