When it comes to affordable housing, Dallas has a problemand two former NFL players are working to fix it.
Kwame Ellis and Khalid Shabazz, both of whom played for the Tennessee Titans, moved to Dallas in 2004 and founded Titan and Associates, reports the Dallas Morning News.
The real estate firm focuses on building homes from the ground up and a construction company specializes in renovating existing homes for various municipalities.
But it wasn't always that way.
"We realized that there was a much broader need outside of just the private side, and that pushed us to see how we could partner with municipalities to put more quality homes into what's now known as 'affordable housing,'" Ellis tells the Morning News.
In fact, Titan has built more than $25 million worth of homes since it was founded.
Ellis and Shabazz's guiding principle, per the Morning News: "doing well while doing good."
"When we revitalize existing homes for the city, we don't just want to get things 'good enough,'" Shabazz says.
"We have an opportunity to make a difference, creating living spaces that people can be proud of, places that are safe."
A customized collection of grant news from foundations and the federal government from around the Web.
William D. Eggers and Paul Macmillan of Dowser write about the social entrepreneurs slowly and steadily dirsupting the world of philanthropy. According to Forbes, philanthropy disruptors are those that believe “no one company is so vital that it can’t be replaced and no single business model too perfect to upend.”