July 2010

In This Issue

Neighbors in Need Fund Mental Health Grants:  "We Can't Overlook the Psychological Impact"

The economic recession continues to pose major challenges to people in our region and to the nonprofit sector faced with an ongoing increased demand for services coupled with decreased public and private resources. In addition to the need for emergency assistance such as food, shelter and clothing, “We can’t overlook the psychological impact that losing one’s livelihood, home or health insurance has on individuals and their families, not to mention the emotional toll of the economic crisis on those who didn’t have homes or jobs to begin with,” said Community Foundation President Terri Lee Freeman.

With that in mind, The Foundation recently awarded grants, through its Neighbors in Need Fund, totaling $308,000 in support of 13 mental health programs throughout the region. Recipients include the Arlington Free Clinic, Ascensions Psychological and Community Services (see profile, below), Bread for the City, Bright Beginnings, Identity, Inc., Jeanie Schmidt Free Clinic, Northern Virginia Family Service, So Others Might Eat, and the Wendt Center for Loss and Healing.

Established in 2008 in response to the recession, The Neighbors in Need Fund awards grants to nonprofit safety-net providers serving the District of Columbia, Northern Virginia, and Montgomery and Prince George’s County in Maryland. To date, more than $3.6 million has been raised, with $1.4 million needed to meet The Foundation’s goal of $5 million by year’s end. An estimated 100,000 people across the Greater Washington region have directly benefited so far from programs supported by the grants.

In 2009, The Foundation was focused on providing funds for food, shelter, clothing and emergency financial support, as well as system reform efforts to strengthen the safety-net. Over time, however, Foundation staff learned that more people, including the “newly poor,” were showing up at community health clinics, many without health insurance and many in need of mental health services and access to prescriptions. In addition, nonprofits were reporting some alarming trends, such as increases in substance abuse, domestic violence and the number of calls to local suicide hotlines.

With technical assistance from health funders from around the region—including the Consumer Health Foundation, Kaiser Permanente (see profile below), the Northern Virginia Health Foundation and The Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation—The Community Foundation decided to expand its funding of safety net organizations to include mental health services, prescription access and medication management.

Grants have helped organizations serve uninsured residents, provide culturally and linguistically appropriate mental health services, extend clinic hours, restore staff positions that had been cut, provide mental health services to homeless individuals and families, fund crisis intervention, reach underserved neighborhoods in southeast Washington and Prince George’s County and support mental health services for Latino families. In addition, says Community Foundation senior program officer Silvana Straw, “Our health funding partners recommended that we fund the integration of mental health care with primary care—a best practice for quality and comprehensive care.”

In addition to the mental health grants, The Community Foundation also announced in June funding for direct services to 38 nonprofits that provide food, shelter, foreclosure prevention, clothing and emergency financial support. Grantees include Action In Community Through Service of Prince William; Arlington Street People's Assistance Network, Bread for the City-Northwest Center, Calvary Women's Services, Capital Area Food Bank, Carpenter's Shelter, DC Central Kitchen, Fairfax Area Christian Emergency and Transitional Services, Family Crisis Center of Prince George's County, Food for Others, Legal Services of Northern Virginia, Loudoun Cares, Manna Food Center, Mobile Medical Care, Neediest Kids, NOVA ScriptsCentral, Shabach! Ministries, So Others Might Eat, Transitional Housing Barn, and many more.

A complete list of the latest Neighbors in Need Fund grantees follows.

Mental Health Services Grants (13)

Arlington Free Clinic
Arlington, VA
$25,000
To support mental health services program that will provide 200 low-income uninsured residents of Arlington County with free culturally and linguistically appropriate mental health services including evaluation, individual counseling, prescribed medications and structured group sessions focused on relevant topics such as stress management and domestic violence. All services will be offer within the clinic’s primary care setting as a part of comprehensive health care services.

Arlington Pediatric Center
Arlington, VA
$25,000
To support the mental health program and support a full time LCSW, allowing the Center to extend after-school and evening hours to make these services more accessible to school-age children.

Ascensions Psychological and Community Services, Inc. 
Washington, DC
$15,000
To support the Ascending Families program which delivers therapeutic services to families living east of the Anacostia River regardless of their ability to pay.

Bread for the City
Washington, DC
$25,000
To support the Social Services program and restoration of a case management position that was eliminated in April 2009 due to recession related agency cutbacks. Restoration will enable BFC to provide mental health services to an additional 45 clients annually and conduct 650 more client visits.

Bright Beginnings, Inc. 
Washington, DC
$25,000
To support the Mental Health Services program. Funds will support a certified Mental Health expert to address escalating service needs for more than 150 homeless people. Services include early assessment of mental health issues, on-site therapeutic services, individualized lesson plans for each child, and coordination between parents, teachers, social workers, and therapists.

Child Center and Adult Services, Inc.
Gaithersburg, MD
$25,000
To support the mental health services through the Healthy Mothers/Healthy Babies program, providing behavioral healthcare to 100 low-income uninsured pregnant women and new mothers. Funds will support a fifth-year doctoral student internship in donated space at Mary’s Center/Silver Spring, providing behavioral healthcare to 100 pregnant women and ,low-income mothers.

Family Services, Inc. 
Gaithersburg, MD
$18,000
To support the mental health services program providing treatment including groups and psychiatric services to clients who are uninsured. The agency will serve 50 uninsured adults and children, many of whom are Spanish-speaking and victims of foreclosure.

Identity, Inc. 
Gaithersburg, MD
$25,000
To support mental health services program for low-income uninsured Latinos through counseling and crisis-intervention.

Jeanie Schmidt Free Clinic
Herndon, VA
$25,000
To provide mental health services to 350 uninsured low-income child and adult patients.

Northern Virginia Family Service
Oakton, VA
$25,000
To support the Multicultural Human Service program, offering mental health services for 132 Latino clients currently on the waiting list.

So Others Might Eat
Washington, DC
$25,000
To support the Behavioral Services program for 1,660 poor and homeless people.

Spanish Catholic Center, Inc. 
Washington, DC
$25,000
To support mental health services for 60 patients, the majority of whom are Latino immigrants. The program provides linguistically appropriate and culturally competent services.

Wendt Center for Loss and Healing 
Washington, DC
$25,000
To support mental health services, including crisis intervention, individual and group therapy to 60 uninsured or underinsured children and families in Southeast, Washington, DC and Prince George's County, MD.

 

Direct Service Grants (38)

Action In Community Through Service of Prince William, Inc. 
Dumfries, VA
$10,000
To support the Emergency Assistance Program and Homeless Shelter, which provides low income families in Prince William County with food, financial assistance and shelter.

Arlington Street People's Assistance Network
Arlington, VA
$10,000
To support support food, emergency shelter, clothing, and emergency financial assistance for 1,800 in Arlington.

Arlingtonians Meeting Emergency Needs, Inc. 
Arlington, VA
$15,000
To support emergency financial assistance to pay for rent, emergency medical and dental services, prescriptions and utilities.

Bread for the City - Northwest Center 
Washington, DC
$25,000
To provide food to more than 3,000 economically vulnerable people in Washington, DC. Arlington, VA

Calvary Women's Services 
Washington, DC
$15,000
To support Calvary Women's Shelter.

Capital Area Food Bank
Washington, DC
$25,000
To support expansion of the Mobile Food Pantries to four new distribution sites in Montgomery County and Northern Virginia that will provide 660 households (2,500 individuals) with 28,000 pounds of fresh produce per month.

Carpenter's Shelter, Inc. 
Alexandria, VA
$10,000
To support David's Place, a day shelter serving 300 chronically homeless adults in Alexandria, VA.

Columbia Heights Shaw Family Support Collaborative
Washington, DC
$15,000
To provide direct emergency financial assistance to low-income families.

Community Crisis Services, Inc. 
Hyattsville, MD
$15,000
To provide emergency financial assistance program for rent, utilities, food and medicine.

Community Legal Services of Prince George's County 
Riverdale, MD
$25,000
To support the Foreclosure Prevention Project, which provides low to moderate income homeowners in Prince George’s County access to the legal services to prevent foreclosure.

Community Support Systems, Inc.
Aquasco, MD
$15,000
To support emergency financial assistance for rent/utilities, food, and prescriptions.

DC Central Kitchen, Inc. 
Washington, DC
$20,000
To support the food recycling and meal distribution program which provides 5,000 daily meals and serves approximately 6,000 individuals per year across the Greater Washington region.

Doorways for Women & Families
Arlington, VA
$15,000
To support food and shelter for 70 - 85 people at Family Home, a shelter for homeless families in Arlington, VA.

Fairfax Area Christian Emergency and Transitional Services, Inc. 
Fairfax, VA
$15,000
To support Emergency Services programs (food, shelter and case management) for single adults and families who are either homeless, on the shelter waiting list in Fairfax County or precariously housed.

Family Crisis Center of Prince George's County 
Brentwood, MD
$25,000
To provide emergency residential services to people experiencing domestic violence. Services include a 24-hour hotline, food, and emergency shelter.

Food for Others, Inc. 
Fairfax, VA
$15,000
To provide emergency food for over 45,000 individuals across Northern Virginia.

Good Shepherd Housing and Family Services, Inc. 
Alexandria, VA
$25,000
To support the provide emergency financial assistance program.

Housing Initiative Partnership, Inc. 
Hyattsville, MD
$25,000
To support foreclosure-prevention programs in Prince George’s County and Montgomery County, Maryland.

Interfaith Conference of Metropolitan Washington 
Washington, DC
$5,000
To support the Emergency Food, Shelter and Health Care Directory.

Interfaith Works 
Rockville, MD
$20,000
To provide clothing and urgent basic supplies to 6,000 families.

Legal Aid Bureau Inc. 
Baltimore, MD
$25,000
To support foreclosure prevention services/legal representation for homeowners in Montgomery and Prince George’s County, Maryland through the Saving Homes Project.

Legal Services of Northern Virginia 
Falls Church, VA
$25,000
To support foreclosure-prevention services and legal assistance to 150 Northern Virginia residents, primarily in Fairfax, Prince William and Loudoun Counties.

Loudoun Cares
Leesburg, VA
$10,000
To support emergency financial assistance program.

Lydia's House 
Washington, DC
$15,000
To support pre-foreclosure group workshops and one-on-one foreclosure counseling.

Manna Food Center 
Rockville, MD
$15,000
To provide food for 45,00 households; 1,800 elementary school children; and 37 nonprofit agencies.

Mobile Medical Care, Inc. 
Bethesda, MD
$10,000
To provide free medications and medical supplies for low-income, uninsured adult patients suffering from chronic care conditions and specific acute care needs.

Montgomery County Coalition for the Homeless, Inc. 
Rockville, MD
$25,000
To provide housing services to 1,550 homeless and formerly homeless men, women, and children in Montgomery County.

Neediest Kids, Inc. 
McLean, VA
$20,000
To provide clothing to 725 students in nine regional school systems in the District of Columbia, Northern Virginia and Suburban Maryland.

NOVA ScriptsCentral 
Reston, VA
$15,000
To provide prescription access to low-income, uninsured adult and child patients at nine partner clinics in Northern Virginia.

Reston Interfaith, Inc. 
Reston, VA
$20,000
To support food and emergency financial assistance programs.

Shabach! Ministries, Inc. 
Landover, MD
$20,000
To expand emergency food assistance to approximately 4,500 people in Landover, Glenarden, Capitol Heights, District Heights, Landover Hills, Upper Marlboro, Springdale and surrounding communities within Prince George's County, MD.

Shelter House 
Falls Church, VA
$20,000
To support the transitional housing program that will serve some 700 homeless people in Fairfax County.

Shepherd's Table
Silver Spring, MD
$20,000
To support food, shelter, clothing, case management and crisis intervention for homeless people in Montgomery County.

So Others Might Eat
Washington, DC
$10,000
To provide vital prescriptions through SOME’s onsite pharmacy to the growing number of patients who suffer from chronic and acute health conditions and who otherwise would not afford medications.

St. Camillus Food Pantries 
Silver Spring, MD
$15,000
To provide emergency food to 600 families per month in Silver Spring, Hyattsville, Adelphi, and Langley Park.

Thrive DC
Washington, DC
$25,000
To support food, clothing, and emergency financial assistance.

Transitional Housing Barn 
Bristow, VA
$10,000
To provide transitional housing for women and children, primarily victims of domestic violence, from Prince William County and other parts of Northern Virginia.

United Community Ministries 
Alexandria, VA
$20,000
To support the Basic Needs program. Funds will support low-income individuals and families in crisis with food, emergency financial assistance, and clothing.

 

Just Published

Neighbors In Need Fund Annual Report: A Region Responds
A Region Responds: The Neighbors in Need Fund Report to the Community

 

Read our new report chronicling the work to date of The Community Foundation’s Neighbors in Need Fund, which supports Washington-area safety-net and advocacy nonprofits in light of the recession. The fully illustrated report includes a complete listing of donors and grantees and tells stories of giving, impact and ongoing need.

Download the report HERE.

Nonprofit Profile: Ascensions Psychological and Community Services 

Ascensions

There’s a saying. When rich people get a cold, poor folk get pneumonia. We’re definitely seeing pneumonia.

Satira Streeter had a difficult childhood. Her mother suffered from mental illness and her father was absent from her life. She was raised by foster parents who sent her to see a therapist as she struggled through adolescence. They meant well, she says, but the experience was not a positive one. Looking back, she realizes that she would have benefited from counseling that also involved her family and community—in other words, a more holistic approach.

As a result, at age 14, Streeter already knew that someday she would pursue a career aimed at helping vulnerable youth and their families cope with life’s challenges.

Today, Dr. Streeter, 35, shares that she is the only licensed clinical psychologist practicing in DC's Ward 8, where she is executive director of Ascensions Psychological and Community Services—the nonprofit agency she founded in 2004. Ascensions provides holistic psychological interventions to families living in Washington’s most impoverished neighborhoods east of the Anacostia River.

When Ascensions first began, Dr. Streeter met with clients in her living room. The organization later moved its headquarters in Anacostia. From the beginning, Streeter was determined to offer services free of charge to individuals in need, even if it meant not drawing a salary in the first three years of operation. She was guided by the saying, “Either I’ll find a way or make one.”

Although the organization has grown from one psychologist with a caseload of 17 to six staff members serving hundreds of families, its philosophy remains true to Dr. Streeter’s original vision. “We practice a ‘therapy without walls’ approach in which we see no boundaries in providing the best psychological care possible,” she says. This means offering a variety of services not just to children and adults with serious emotional, behavioral and/or mental disorders, but to the entire family. In addition to family therapy, therapists provide children and their parents with individual therapy, therapeutic groups, parenting classes, clinical evaluations, behavior management planning and school-based interventions. Services are offered in a variety of settings including the organization’s office, local public schools, workplaces, churches and other community agencies. The organization’s goal is to get children on track at home, in school and in their neighborhoods and decrease incidents of child abuse, school failure, delinquency and substance abuse.

“People hear that Anacostia is a bad place,” says Dr. Streeter.

Ascensions is getting at the issues that plague our communities the most—anger, depression, low self-esteem and a feeling of hopelessness.

As for the impact of the economic recession on the residents of Wards 7 and 8, Streeter responds: “There’s a saying: ‘When rich people catch a cold, poor folk catch pneumonia.’ We’re definitely seeing pneumonia.” The need for mental health care has grown and continues to grow. A year ago, 30% of clients didn’t have health insurance. Today, the number of uninsured clients has risen to 55%.

A $15,000 grant from The Community Foundation’s Neighbors in Need Fund is providing support for the Ascending Families program. Funding will allow Ascensions to expand the hours of its therapists to meet the growing demand for services, especially group therapy. “By recognizing that good mental health care is a necessity and not an option, The Community Foundation is truly helping our neighbors in need rebuild their lives and their families,” Dr. Streeter said.

 

Donor Profile: Kaiser Permanente

Kaiser Permanente

In supporting our region’s health safety net and community health initiatives, Kaiser Permanente collaborates with other organizations – pooling our resources together – so that our collective grantmaking makes a greater impact on our communities.

“Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to improving the health of the communities we live and work in,” said Mindy Rubin, director of charitable programs and safety net partnerships for Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States. As the area’s largest not-for-profit health plan and health care provider, Kaiser Permanente serves approximately 500,000 members in Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia. In 2009, Kaiser Permanente’s grants and donations focused on improving access to health care for uninsured and underserved communities, improving the quality of health care in community clinics, supporting healthy eating-active living initiatives and providing communities with assistance during hard economic times.

“In supporting our region’s health safety net and community health initiatives, Kaiser Permanente collaborates with other organizations – pooling our resources together –so that our collective grantmaking makes a greater impact on our communities,” Rubin said.

For instance, last year Kaiser Permanente contributed $150,000 to The Community Foundation’s Neighbors in Need Fund. “Neighbors in Need was a perfect match for us,” said Rubin. “The Community Foundation was focused on strengthening the region’s safety net at the same time we were making emergency assistance grants to local nonprofits. Supporting Neighbors in Need was a natural fit. And The Community Foundation was a natural partner—one we have worked with as part of Washington Grantmakers’ Health Working Group and on other grant making initiatives through the years.”

Rubin went on to say that Kaiser Permanente “appreciates a variety of perspectives. For instance, we value The Community Foundation’s perspective as a regional funder and its decades-long experience.”

Kaiser Permanente’s chief administrative officer, Carrie Harris-Muller comments, “Kaiser Permanente is committed to building partnerships with the institutions that serve on the frontlines of health care for the underserved. By providing support to community health centers and local health departments, we help them deliver medical care to the people in our communities. At a time when individuals and community organizations are struggling, we are committed to providing support that helps them stay healthy and safe.”



Wrap-up: 2010 Annual Meeting

Last month, a lively group of some 100 community foundation donors, funders and friends gathered for The Foundation's 2010 Annual Meeting, held at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center. This year's theme, "Give Back, Get Results," examined the concept of catalytic philanthropy -- that is, supporting nonprofits and causes not just by writing a check, but also by giving one's time and talent to bring about positive change.

Wachovia_A_Wells_Fargo_Company
The event was sponsored by Wachovia, A Wells Fargo Company.

Community Foundation President Terri Lee Freeman delivered a wide-ranging report on The Foundation's health and work. In terms of assets, The Foundation went from a low of $303M at the depths of the recession to the current level of just over $360M. While our donors' grantmaking has declined in light of the recession, overall giving still remains strong, with some $54M in grants awarded in FY10. The Foundation's priorities continue to be The Neighbors in Need Fund (see lead article in this issue), education, workforce development, and capacity-building.

This year's keynote speaker and panel of Community Foundation donors were especially engaging. Keynote speaker Aaron Hurst, President and CEO of Taproot Foundation, inspired us by explaining that the concept of catalytic philanthropy goes beyond leadership and management to a service-oriented approach -- in his words, a "pragmatic optimism" -- in which donors create something of value by taking ownership of their communities.  Afterward, a panel of three Community Foundation donors shared their perspectives on -- and motivations behind -- their charitable giving.

View a slideshow of this year’s event HERE.  (Photos:  Daniel Rosenbaum, Rosetree Photography.)

 

Upcoming Events

 
Save the Date! Upcoming Candidates Forum

Candidates Forum:  Prince George's County Executive Election 
August 26, 2010
6:30pm - 8:30pm
8181 Professional Place
Landover, MD

Here's your chance to hear from -- and ask questions of -- this year's candidates running for County Executive of Prince George's County.

Sponsored by the Center for Nonprofit Advancement, The Community Foundation for Prince George's County, Greater Prince George's Business Roundtable, Human Services Coalition for Prince George's County, Maryland Association of Nonprofits, Maryland Multicultural Center, Nonprofit Roundtable of Greater Washington, and the Washington Regional Association of Grantmakers. 

For more information: dgriffin@cfncr.org 


  
 
Save the Dates -- Our Fall and Winter Celebrations!

The Community Foundation for Montgomery County's 2010 "Celebration of Giving"
October 28, 2010
Chevy Chase Trust
Bethesda, MD

The Community Foundation for the National Capital Region's 2010 "Celebration of Civic Spirit"
December 9, 2010
The Ritz-Carlton
Washington, DC
Learn more HERE.


Join Our Online Community

 

 

In our blog "Giving It Some Thought," Community Foundation President Terri Lee Freeman and others share their perspectives on regional issues and philanthropy. Read it and sign-up for RSS feeds HERE.




Become a fan of our Neighbors in Need Fund Facebook page and stay up-to-date on the latest Neighbors in Need news!  Find us HERE.



Follow us @CommunityFndn and our President, Terri Lee Freeman, @TerriLeeFreeman

Community Foundation Donors: Go Green! Sign Up for E-Statements and Donor Central

If you're a Community Foundation donor, you now can receive your quarterly statements electronically.  It's the fast, easy, efficient, and earth-friendly way to keep track of your fund profile.  Registering only takes a minute. Sign up HERE.

Sign up for Donor Central!  This free, secure online service lets you recommend grants and check your fund activity 24/7.  Contact Starlet Hunter, Director of Development, at (202) 263-4763 or shunter@cfncr.org.

 

About The Community Foundation

Founded in 1973, The Community Foundation for the National Capital Region promotes charitable giving and plays a leading role in finding innovative solutions to the Greater Washington region's most challenging problems. The Foundation is a community of givers – individuals, families and corporations have joined with the Foundation; as a result, the Foundation provides sound management of some 700 funds and $320 million in assets. In FY2008, The Community Foundation and its donors awarded more than $91 million in grants to nonprofit organizations in the Washington, DC region and beyond. The Foundation has two affiliates – The Community Foundation for Montgomery County, and The Community Foundation for The Prince George’s County. For more information, visit www.thecommunityfoundation.org.

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Regional Affiliate – The Community Foundation for Montgomery County
8720 Georgia Avenue, Suite 202 | Silver Spring, MD 20910 | Phone: (301) 588-2544

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Regional Affiliate – The Community Foundation for Prince George's County
8181 Professional Place | Landover, MD 20785 | Phone: (301) 464-6706