GT E-News - Issue 1, Winter 2013-14

Giving Together Awards 2013 Grants

Associate Executive Director Nathaniel Cole describes Urban Alliance to GT members attending Annual Meeting.

At the annual meeting in October, we were delighted to award two grants to area nonprofits. Additional award funds were possible due to an increase in GT membership, as well as a gift from an anonymous donor! We awarded $20,000 to The George B. Thomas, Sr. Learning Academy’s Saturday School and $20,000 to the Urban Alliance. Our two semi-finalist organizations, Project Create and New Community for Children, each received a small award of $3,500. All four organizations excel in providing education assistance to area youth.

Urban Alliance provides paid internships with area employers, employment-skills training and mentoring to low-income high school students in Washington, DC. Founded in 1996, UA has had great success insuring that interns graduate from high school, move on to college or vocational schools, and find long-term, stable employment.

Our GT grants will be used by both the Saturday School and Urban Alliance to purchase up-to-date technology equipment that will help students achieve excellence in a complex world.

Justice Department Funds DCVLP

Last year, GT awarded $25,000 to the DC Volunteer Lawyers Project (DCVLP) to enable them to expand their civil protection order program, which assists victims of domestic violence. GT funds enabled DCVLP to hire a new supervisory attorney. Our grant has returned far more than a short- term expansion of this program, as DCVLP explains below:

“DCVLP was recently awarded a three-year grant from the US Department of Justice’s Office of Violence Against Women (OVW), a portion of which will be used to [extend the employment of the supervisory attorney through 2016]. Without the seed money we received from Giving Together and other local funders, which allowed us to create a strong track record of success as a young organization, DCVLP would not have been as likely to secure a grant from OVW through this very competitive program. In other words, Giving Together’s investment in DCVLP has paid substantial dividends, not only in terms of services for clients provided during the grant period but also for future years.”

GT Volunteers for Our Grantee Organizations

Every year, our members are making a huge difference in the lives of DC area residents. GT’s activities are not limited to our grant-giving. For example, our volunteers serve lunch, conduct art projects, play bingo, and paint nails for the ladies at Rachael’s Women’s Center, our 2011 grantee. Rachael’s is an outstanding organization dedicated to helping homeless women in DC.

We are also delighted to continue our close relationship with our first grantee, A Wider Circle, a highly regarded anti-poverty organization in Silver Spring. We volunteer on a monthly basis in their Professional Development Center, which provides business attire and training for low income job seekers.

We also bag nonperishable food for needy families at Thanksgiving and wrap and re-stock gifts at AWC’s North Pole at Christmas time.

If you would like to help at the North Pole, GT will be volunteering on December 19 and/or December 21 (10:00 am - 1:00 pm). For more information, contact Kim Schifrin at kdschifrin@gmail.com. On December 5, from noon to 3 PM, GT will help with DCVLP’s annual fundraising mailing. To volunteer, please contact Joanie Edwards at jse1952@gmail.com.

GT Receives Special Gift from our Extended Family

Giving Together recently received a charitable contribution from Matthew Bullock, son of GT Treasurer Ellen Yahuda. The gift resulted from a recent Colorado real estate transaction. Matthew’s realtor has a charity program, started in 2008, where she gives 5% of her commission to a charity of her clients' choice. She feels this helps her become more aware of commendable charities, particularly those her clients feel passionate about. Thank you to Matthew Bullock and his realtor Terry Rogers of Aspen Snowmass Sotheby’s International Realty!

GT Helps Families with Emergency Needs

Our Emergency Fund, established three years ago, assists local area needy individuals and families in crisis to buy medicine, food or pay overdue rent or utility bills. To date, we have given $10,000 to the Community Foundation of Montgomery County, which administers our money and matches our gift dollar for dollar. Money for this fund is raised solely from our Spring Dinner proceeds and by donations, other than membership dues.  For more information on Giving Together, contact President Paula Norwood at pn1153@gmail.com or visit the GT website: www.giving-together.org.