Joseph Waldo, Executive Director
Joseph Waldo is an economist with a unique combination of for-profit and non-profit experience. He has been President of URDC since 2002, successfully growing the organization’s membership from three churches to eleven and has been instrumental in the development of URDC’s highly successful Owner Occupied Home Repair Program. Joe has also been Vice-Chairman of the Germantown Special Services District (GSSD), a quasi-public corporation with assessment authority to improve commercial corridors in Philadelphia’s Germantown neighborhood.
In the private sector, Joe is a successful transportation professional with extensive experience in logistics, Class 1 railroad management,and business development. He currently works as a consultant advising public- and private-sector clients in support of transportation infrastructure investment. Joe resides in Chestnut Hill and is an Adjunct Professor in Economics at Montgomery County Community College. He holds a MA in Regional Economics from the University of Pennsylvania and a BA in Sociology/Urban Studies from The Catholic University of America. See: www.joewaldo.com
Valerie Harris, Housing Coordinator
Valerie has been with URDC since mid-2013 overseeing the Owner-Occupied Repair Program. A licensed real estate agent with degrees in Social Work and Urban Economic Development, Valerie has extensive knowledge of housing issues and the needs of the people she serves. She has long been active in the community, having worked for the Philadelphia Housing Authority and having developed policy for the Philadelphia Interfaith Hospitality Network (PIHN) and Transformational Housing Program (THP).
Clive Thompkins, Project Manager
Clive has over 18 years of experience in the home repair and rehabilitation industry. He manages his own minority-owned contracting company in Philadelphia that specializes in painting, drywall repair, tile installation, plumbing, and electrical. A Jamaican immigrant, Clive recently became an American citizen after participating in the Sanctuary program at a local church in 2020 and 2021.
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