The Poplar Bluff Housing Authority will gain its first deputy director this year: Rebeca Pacheco of the Butler County Community Resource Council is stepping into this new role and the next phase of her career.
Pacheco has spent 10 cumulative years with CRC, first as a program coordinator from 2010-2014 and then as executive director from 2018 to the present. CRC’s counseling programs and focus on community partnership drew her to the organization.
“I’ve spent my career in social services working with all different kinds of individuals. The programs that they offer, the mentoring programs, really resonated with me,” she recalled.
“Rebeca has been an excellent leader for the Community Resource Council,” said CRC Board President Byron Beck. “I think she genuinely cares for people in the community, for parents and children. I’ve always felt she’s compassionate and kindhearted.
“She’s a great fit to head that organization (PBHA)....She understands the functions of state and local government. We hate to see her leave, but I’m not surprised someone wanted to hire her for the next step up,” Beck continued.
As much as she values CRC, Pacheco felt the opportunity at PBHA was the next logical step for her career. She also has a personal connection to it through her grandparents, who lived in PBHA housing, and her mother, who worked in the Twin Towers cafeteria. The mission of affordable housing is dear to her heart — while her family lived in Texas, they qualified for housing assistance as a single-parent household, which allowed her mother to go back to school. She earned a bachelor’s and a master’s degree, then later started a business.
“That support of public housing allowed us to go from poverty to solidly middle class,” Pacheco said.
She continued, “There can be negative perceptions by the community of people who receive housing assistance.” Pacheco believes this is unwarranted — public housing transforms the lives of single mothers, young families, minimum wage workers, elderly grandparents and more.
“I think that it’s good for people to remember that those are the individuals in our community that public housing serves, and it can change their lives,” she said.
Pacheco is excited to work with and expand PBHA’s community partnerships in her new role. She further hopes to address barriers residents may face, ensure programs are integrated and help keep residents connected to their community.
“I am passionate about it because I think that it is a service that stabilizes families in our community,” Pacheco summarized.
Pacheco steps into her new role on Aug. 1.
“We are excited and looking forward to Ms. Pacheco joining our team at the Housing Authority,” said PBHA Executive Director Darrin Taylor. “Her strong ties to public housing and genuine interest in our work in providing affordable housing and fostering community empowerment makes her the perfect fit.”
Pacheco is extensively involved in the Southeast Missouri community as a whole. She’s an executive board member for the Greater Poplar Bluff Area Chamber of Commerce, Ozark Foothills Regional Planning Commission and Carter County Law Enforcement Restitution Board. She is board president of the Friends of the Carter County Courthouse and Ozark Riverways Foundation.
Pacheco holds a Master of Business Administration from Texas Woman’s University and is a graduate of the Delta Leadership Institute Executive Academy.
As she prepares to depart, CRC is scouting for a new director.
“We’re looking for someone with a lot of community connections, who is comfortable facilitating and building those connections ideally, someone with a strong financial background and grant writing skills,” Pacheco said.
A full job description is available online at thecrc.org. Anyone interested should email their resume to rebeca.pacheco@thecrc.org.
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