The Massachusetts Association of Realtors Charitable Foundation has given seven local charities its spring 2010 Housing and Homeless Assistance Grants.

The following charities were nominated by local Realtor boards and then selected to receive the grants based on their initiatives to provide affordable housing, shelter and other emergency care services within Massachusetts:

• Elizabeth Freeman Center in Pittsfield;
• Habitat for Humanity Town of Boylston Local Project
• Habitat for Humanity of Cape Cod;
• The Home for Littler Wanders (Baird Center) in Plymouth;
• Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless in Lynn;
• Montachusett Interfaith Hospitality Network in Leominster; and
• The Salvation Army of New Bedford;

"These charities are truly making a difference in the lives of the people they are serving and it was the foundation’s honor to help them further their missions by awarding each a $1,500 Housing and Homeless Assistance Grant this spring," said MAR Charitable Foundation Chairman Lynette Helms, CEO/broker of record, Real Estate Assoc. in North Falmouth. "Realtors have a long history of giving back to the communities they live and work in and these grants are just one way the foundation can help deepen those connections."