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  August 2016
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Workplace Giving:

United Way: #8099
CFC: #79645 

 

Shop AND Give Back

Did you resolve to give more this year? Here is an easy way. When shopping online, try using Amazon Smile, which donates 0.5 percent of your purchase, or Goodshop, which can donate up to 10 percent, to Northern Virginia Family Service. Every little bit counts!

 

Lou Maroon Golf Tournament for SERVE

Save the date for the Lou Maroon Golf Tournament benefitting our SERVE campus on Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2016.

 

Save the Date: Empty Bowls – Oct. 13

Empty-Bowls-2016

Join us Oct. 13 at 5:30 p.m. at Manassas Church of the Brethren to help fight local hunger at our annual Empty Bowls event. Visit nvfs.org/emptybowls for more information, including ticket purchases.

Can You Feed 50?

NVFS Bailey’s Crossroads Community Shelter needs your help to feed our 50 shelter residents on the following dates:

Saturday, Aug. 6 – Dinner

Sunday, Aug. 7 – Lunch

Groups or individuals can prepare family-style meals, bagged or boxed meals or order food for delivery. Meals for 50 people can be dropped-off or prepared and served onsite at BCCS.

Lunch is served from 12:30-1:30 p.m., and dinner is from 6-7 p.m.

If you are able to help, please contact Meagan Perkins at 703-820-7621 or mperkins@nvfs.org for details.

 

 Happy Birthday and best wishes to all of our volunteers with August birthdays!

 

NVFS Community & Volunteer Engagement Team

Karen Horowitz
Director
khorowitz@nvfs.org, 571.748.2626

Navara Cannon
Specialist at SERVE
ncannon@nvfs.org, 571.748.2536

 Meagan Perkins
Specialist at BCCS
mperkins@nvfs.org, 703.820.7621 x218

Jamie Johnson
Specialist
jajohnson@nvfs.org, 571.748.2621

Summer Fun at SERVE

 

SERVE playground

 

 

 

 

 

 

Summer for kids is a time to play outside and enjoy fun in the sun. Unfortunately, that’s not the case for some of our clients. When you’re homeless, the chances for summer fun and playground glee are significantly decreased. Luckily, that is not the case for the children at our SERVE Family Care Shelter in Manassas.

Thanks to wonderful volunteers from Concord Crossroads working together with shelter staff, the new playground at SERVE was repaired and children are able to play outside again. This is the first time the shelter has had a playground since the shelter expansion in 2011.

To mark this special occasion, Friends of SERVE hosted a celebratory Family Cookout, braving the 105-degree temperatures to grill chicken, burgers and hot dogs, share snow-cone treats, and play games.

THANK YOU! to Friends of SERVE for bringing an evening of summer fun to our shelter residents and to Concord Crossroads for bringing playground fun to the shelter children for years to come!

 

Bailey’s Crossroads Community Shelter to Temporarily Relocate
Bailey's Crossroad Community Shelter

On Thursday, July 28, the Fairfax County Planning Commission voted to approve the temporary relocation of NVFS Bailey’s Crossroads Community Shelter (BCCS) to a shared campus with the Lincolnia Senior Center in late 2017. We will continue to serve the needs of single adults experiencing homelessness in our community at the temporary site while a new permanent site is constructed on Seminary Road in Falls Church.

Thank you to our dedicated volunteers who participated in our BCCS Community Advisory Council’s efforts to share their positive experiences with homeless services. At a recent Fairfax County Planning Commission public hearing, many of our dedicated partners stayed late into the night to participate in the public commentary portion of the evening. We sincerely appreciate the many thoughtful words in support of our clients and services. Together, we successfully informed our community members about the real needs and behaviors of people experiencing homelessness.

If you are interested in viewing the hearing, a recording is available here. (Testimonies begin at roughly the 1 hour, 55 minute mark.)

 
Volunteer Spotlight: Lindsey Alloy

If you walked down the hall of our Head Start center this summer to the sounds of ballet music and children’s laughter, you probably ran into Lindsey Alloy. Lindsey has been sharing her passion for ballet and dance with the Head Start children this summer and exposing many of them to this new experience for the first time.

Lindsey’s favorite part of volunteering for NVFS is the children. “The kids are super sweet, and they really get into [the dancing]. It’s been really, really, fun! I love helping others out.”

A junior in high school, Lindsey has been dancing since she was 4 years old. Couple that with a love of children and you get a wonderful volunteer for our Head Start center.

Thank you, Lindsey, for sharing your love of dance with some of our youngest clients!

 

New Team Member

We are pleased to announce the newest member of our team! Jamie Johnson has joined us as the Community & Volunteer Engagement Specialist for Fairfax, Arlington and Loudoun counties, based in our Oakton office. You may already have met her at the Back-to-School Drive or touring our program sites. Jamie has enthusiastically jumped in with both feet and embraced her new role at NVFS. Welcome, Jamie, and thank you for hitting the ground running!

 

The BCCS Community Advisory Council Needs You!

Last month, the BCCS Community Advisory Council met to re-engage and support the efforts of the NVFS Bailey’s Crossroads Community Shelter. But our work with the Advisory Council has only just begun!

We invite you — our NVFS volunteers — to join us in fostering collaborative relationships with local residents, business owners, civic officials, nonprofits, faith organizations, and other partners. These partnerships are instrumental in ensuring that BCCS continues to successfully serve the needs of our community.

If you want to learn more about the Advisory Council or other opportunities to support BCCS, please contact Meagan Perkins at 703.820.7621 x218 or mperkins@nvfs.org.

 

Volunteer Opportunities

Habla Espanol? Want to Help the Hungry? If you are bilingual in Spanish and English, and believe everyone should have adequate access to food, we have a volunteer position for you! The Food Assistance Client Intake Specialist greets and processes clients coming for food assistance, updates their information and helps clients complete forms. They also monitor the food assistance line and return calls to schedule appointments. Volunteer hours are flexible Monday-Friday and include one evening shift on Wednesdays. Must be at least 18 years old and bilingual in Spanish and English. Good customer service skills are also important. All training is provided. Contact Navara Cannon at 571.748.2536.

Two Opportunities to Drive Out Hunger & Homelessness

  • Hunger: Every day food goes to waste while families in our community go hungry. You can help! Food Recovery Drivers are needed weekday mornings, especially Mondays, to pick up donations from Manassas-area grocery stores/restaurants and deliver the food to SERVE’s Hunger Resource Center. Volunteers must be able to lift up to 50 lbs. Drivers must be at least 21 years old with a valid driver’s license. Teens can ride with drivers to assist.
  • Homelessness: Transportation is one of the biggest barriers to employment for homeless clients. You can help solve this problem by being a Shelter Services Driver. Volunteers are needed weekdays to drive clients in the SERVE passenger van to their jobs, job interviews and important appointments. Drivers must be at least 21 years old with a valid driver’s license.

Training is provided. Contact Navara Cannonat 571.748.2536.

 

Interpreters – Volunteers are needed to translate for clients in our mental health services office. Urgent language needs include French and Spanish. Volunteers must be at least 18 years old, able to maintain confidentiality and submit to a criminal background check. Contact Jamie Johnson at 571.748.2621.

Holiday Meals for SERVE – The holiday season is right around the corner, which means more opportunities to provide meals for our shelter residents. Volunteers are needed to prepare and serve meals on Labor Day, Thanksgiving and the day after Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day. Meals may be brought in or prepared onsite in our fully equipped kitchen. Please note that volunteers must supply all food ingredients for the meal. Volunteers must be at least 16 years old. Contact Navara Cannon at 571.748.2536.

 

Northern Virginia Family Service
10455 White Granite Dr, Suite 100, Oakton, VA 22124
571.748.2500
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