What happens when someone takes what they’ve learned in a free AI Institute workshop and applies it to a local challenge? At HomesFund, it helped turn a boardroom idea into a working podcast—one that now helps first-time homebuyers access vital information from anywhere, at anytime.

AI sparks a new idea for reaching first-time homebuyers

Veniece Fagerlin, office manager at HomesFund, had been part of a conversation about whether traditional advertising was the best use of the nonprofit’s resources for outreach to first-time homebuyers.

“At a board meeting, we discussed the challenge of determining the ROI on money spent for newspaper or radio ads,” she said. “During that conversation, it came up that at least one board member listens to podcasts on their commute, which sparked the idea: why not create a podcast for HomesFund?”

AI Institute workshops inspire a practical solution

The idea made sense but turning it into a reality required new tools. That’s where Kelli Stanley came in. As success director and referral coordinator at The Wells Group, Stanley had been attending the free community Katz AI workshops hosted by the AI Institute at Fort Lewis College. She saw an opportunity to help.

“I wanted smaller digestible educational snip-its about HomesFund to push out to potential homebuyers, so I approached Pam Moore and Veniece Fagerlin with an idea about creating AI-generated Podcasts,” Stanley said.

Stanley introduced Fagerlin to NotebookLM, ChatGPT, and other free or low-cost platforms that could help adapt HomesFund’s existing class content into short-form episodes.

“Initially, we had considered producing an in-person podcast, but Kelli showed us how NotebookLM could streamline the process, reducing both financial costs and the time required to create in-person podcasts,” Fagerlin said.

A podcast production process that works for small teams

Though Fagerlin had no background in AI, she embraced the tools and built a creative, repeatable process that now takes just a few hours each week to manage.

“With practice, I am gaining the confidence and tools to launch our podcast more quickly each week. It became less about technology and more about creativity—finding new ways to tell our story and serve our community,” she said.

The team went from idea to launch within weeks. Today, the workflow takes about two hours per episode and costs less than $30 per month using a mix of free and low-cost tools like NotebookLM, ChatGPT, and Audacity.

“One of the biggest surprises was how quickly AI could help us prototype an episode,” Fagerlin said. “We went from an outline, or a page in our Homebuyer Education workbook, to a rough cut in hours, not weeks.”

New format makes homebuyer education more accessible

The podcast serves as a supplement to HomesFund’s traditional eight-hour homebuyer class. It allows clients to revisit information on their own time and stay informed about updates that don’t always fit within a fixed curriculum.

“The on-demand format allows listeners to use the episodes as a tickler—a way to spark curiosity and encourage them to seek more information—or as a helpful refresher of some of the key information they learned in class,”Fagerlin said.

“The goal is to reach more homebuyers with smaller packets of education to reach them on their turf—home, car, office, walk, etc.,” Stanley added.

The podcast has made it easier for HomesFund to share important information with the community. Staff can distribute the link through QR codes on flyers at homebuyer education classes, hand it out during counseling sessions, email it to realtors and lenders, or share it on social media to help draw more attention to their programs.

“So we can get more people in homes using our expertise with education and counseling, and down payment assistance funding resources,” Fagerlin said.

AI helps nonprofits amplify their mission

For both Stanley and Fagerlin, the project reflects what’s possible when nonprofits and small businesses explore how AI can support their work in meaningful, mission-driven ways.

“Just jump in!” Stanley said. “Tell AI the goal, then ask AI where to start and which tools would be best. Start with free tools, then upgrade to paid subscription once needed.”

“Start small and stay curious,” Fagerlin said. “You don’t need to overhaul your whole operation—pick one project or pain point and see how AI might help. Most importantly, keep your mission at the center—AI is just a tool to help amplify your impact.”

In the end, the HomesFund podcast is about more than technology. It’s about access. It’s about how one nonprofit is using AI to expand its reach, connect with more first-time homebuyers, and share critical information in new and accessible ways. It’s also a story about how community-led workshops from the AI Institute at Fort Lewis College are helping people in the region use AI not just creatively, but in service of the community.

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