Oak Valley Community Bank Awarded $300,000 to Support Habitat for Humanity's Hope Village

MODESTO, CA--(Marketwire - June 10, 2009) - The dream of homeownership moves closer to reality for ten additional low-income families of Stanislaus County, who have yet to be selected for the second and final phase ofthe Hope Village development in Modesto, California. The Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) of San Francisco awarded $300,000 in Affordable Housing Program (AHP) funds to Oak Valley Community Bank (NASDAQ: OVLY), who has partnered with Habitat for Humanity, Stanislaus.

A total of $30.3 million was awarded in the first round of 2009 recipient announcements. The AHP grants were awarded to 42 projects in Arizona, California, Illinois, Nevada, Texas, and Washington. The grants will help construct 2,558 affordable housing units in those states.

Designed to be a flexible source of gap financing, the Bank's competitive AHP provides grants to assist in the purchase, construction, or rehabilitation of housing for lower-income households.

Anita Hellam, Executive Director of Habitat for Humanity, stated, "We are pleased with the partnership Oak Valley Community Bank has provided us. In addition to the AHP Grant, Oak Valley also partnered with Habitat on the Workforce Initiative Subsidy for Homeownership (WISH) programs through the FHLB. With the current economic climate, grants like this one are even more precious. We are grateful to Oak Valley Community Bank and the FHLB for all they do to support Habitat for Humanity and the entire community."

AHP funds will be used for construction of the second phase of Hope Village, a 20-unit family subdivision. The Hernandez family is one of the ten approved for Hope Village. They have been working hard to complete their required 500 hours of "sweat equity," in hopes of moving out of their current living conditions and into a home of their own. For them, Hope Village is truly a dream come true.

In addition to the gap funding provided by FHLB, there are also great energy efficient features at Hope Village. Each home will be equipped with solar units, thanks to MID and PG&E who have made it possible to construct these homes to be energy efficient. "When low-income households are able to dramatically reduce their utility bills through energy efficiency programs, like those MID and PG&E have granted, the homeowner's quality of life is improved through greater disposable income," said Hellam.

Habitat is currently accepting applications. Those seeking more information on home ownership, are urged to contact Nell Pitman at 209-575-4585, extension 117.

To find out how you can become involved visit our web-site at www.stanislaushabitat.org.

About Oak Valley Community Bank:

Oak Valley Community Bank is a locally owned community bank, based in Oakdale, California. They currently operate through 12 conveniently located branches: Oakdale, Sonora, Turlock, Stockton, Patterson, Ripon, Escalon, two branches in Modesto, and three branches in their Eastern Sierra Division, which includes Bridgeport, Mammoth Lakes and Bishop.

Contact Information: Habitat for Humanity, Stanislaus Contact: Anita Hellam Executive Director Phone: 209-575-4585 ext. 105 Cell: 209-613-0603 Oak Valley Community Bank Contact: Gary Stephens Senior Vice President Phone: 209-758-8045