By Rose Meily

Realtors and affiliates of the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors (SILVAR) have scheduled the ninth annual Housing Industry Foundation (HIF) Home for the Holidays charity benefit 5:30-10:30 p.m. Thursday at the Avalon in Santa Clara.

HIF is a non-profit charity that helps individuals and families in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties remain in stable housing. Emergency Housing Grants, at the core of HIF’s homeless prevention program, provide one-time emergency assistance without red tape to help individuals or families with rent, mortgage, utilities, security deposits and certain repairs.

This year, emergency grants enabled Ana, a struggling single mother of three, to pay rent on her apartment after she was injured in a car accident; helped Alex and Marie, a young married couple, who, forced to move out of a home occupied by 13 other people, found a new place but did not have money left for furniture or food; and assisted Elizabeth, who, affected by a schizoaffective disorder, had enough money to move to an apartment and pay the deposit but not enough funds for the first month’s rent.

The apartment, real estate and building industries support HIF. Board members shoulder administrative costs, so the money raised goes directly to those in need.

“Every single penny raised through sponsorships, tickets and the auctions and raffle goes directly to people in our communities who need it,” said Judy Ellis, a realtor with Alain Pinel Realtors and former SILVAR board president.

Ellis said the realtor association has hosted Home for the Holidays for nearly a decade because HIF programs “help people help themselves. Some people face an unexpected illness or are laid off from work and don’t have enough money to tide them over for their rent. Grants from HIF help them not go out in the streets or go to a shelter. The key is it’s not just a handout - funds raised help them sustain housing.”

Coldwell Banker of Northern California, Home Loan Experts, Siamack Shariat/Banker’s Network, Keller Williams Realty (Cupertino and Palo Alto offices), The Sereno Group, Bank of America and Alain Pinel Realtors (Los Gatos, Saratoga, Palo Alto, Los Altos and Menlo Park offices) sponsor the fundraiser.

Tickets are $50 and include a buffet dinner, silent and live auctions and a raffle.

For tickets, sponsorships/donations or more information, contact SILVAR Development Director Kelly Dadsetan at (408) 200-0100 or e-mail Rose Meily at rmeily@silvar.org.