Annual Report 2022
This was another challenging year, living through a pandemic, serving our community members whose lives have been negatively impacted the most. There has been a tremendous sense of loss and grief, and a longing for the way things once were.
Yet, our Bethesda Project community has remained resilient and strong, and we are evolving!
The founding members of Bethesda Project demonstrated our mission of being family with those who have none by treating people in need as they would treat their most beloved family member — with care, kindness, and compassion. That approach is still our formula for success, and despite all that this year has thrown our way, our staff and volunteers continue to positively impact lives through compassionate care that’s centered around individual choice and the belief that change is possible.
We are proud of all that we’ve achieved this year, including these highlights:
✔ Sustained operations of our 15 programs, serving approximately 1000 unique individuals in need;
✔ Continued progress on our strategic plan goals, including an increase to $15.50/hr for our minimum wage, expanding administrative capacity, creating new job tiers for promotional opportunities, and implementation of a new case management database system;
✔ The commitment of our largest individual donor contribution to date, a $1,000,000 gift over five years;
✔ A return to an in-person annual special event which exceeded our revenue goal, featuring Mike McCann as the Party & Auction Honorary Chair; and
✔ The development of a Staff Appreciation Week to demonstrate our deep gratitude for the dedicated work of our outstanding staff, which created moments of celebration across our sites.
You are essential to our ongoing success, and we are grateful for your continued support. Thank you for choosing to be part of our Bethesda Project family.
Sincerely,
Tina Pagotto CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Tina Pagotto Chief Executive Officer
FROM OUR CEO
As I compose these words literally on the eve of Thanksgiving, it seems appropriate to use this opportunity to make a sincere expression of gratitude to all who contributed to the many accomplishments of the 2022 fiscal year. While the continuing pandemic posed ongoing challenges for Bethesda Project guests, residents, employees, and volunteers alike, we were collectively able to persevere to fulfill our mission with determination and creativity. The Board of Directors is truly grateful to everyone who made that possible.
The commitment of our often-strained staff enabled us to continue to deliver essential services to those we call family across our continuum of care, from shelter guests to residents in our permanent supportive housing sites. Our volunteers found ways to participate in that care, despite the COVID related restrictions we lifted only recently. And our donors exhibited new levels of generosity to enable both current operations and future sustainability.
To all who contributed their time, talent or treasure, or any combination thereof, to the success of Bethesda Project’s efforts throughout the past year, thank you, thank you, thank you.
Marie L. MartinoPRESIDENT
Marie L. Martino President, Bethesda Project Board of DirectorsFiscal Year 2022 Board of Directors
Marie L. Martino, President M.L. Martino Consulting LLC
David T. Swoyer, Vice President Santander Bank (retired)
Amedeo (Mike) Piccioni, Treasurer
Retired Financial Executive
Kyle J. Werder, Secretary
Comcast
Dwayne Edghill
Comcast
Susan M. Glessner-Stickley
Stratus, INC.
Zachary Green
Penn Nonprofit Board Fellow
Hazelita Hayes
Former Resident of Bethesda Project
Daniel T. Hirst, CPA, MST
AmerisourceBergen (Retired)
Erin Leffler
Shook, Hardy & Bacon LLP
Carolyn Lewis Morgan Stanley
Bruce Lieberson
Former Resident of Bethesda Project
Tina Pagotto, MSW CEO, Bethesda Project James Paige Segora Group
Abbot Domenic A. Rossi, O. Praem. Founder, Bethesda Project
Hon. David R. Strawbridge
United States District Court
Ann Watts Fox Chase Cancer Center
Elyse Wilkinson Penn Nonprofit Board Fellow
In fiscal year 2022 we provided case management, housing, emergency shelter, as well as walk-up and outreach services to nearly 1,000 unique individuals across 15 locations. Everyone who walks into a Bethesda Project site is treated with care and kindness. Whether their length of stay be a night or decades, we make sure we get to know the individuals we serve.
Everyone should have a safe and welcoming place to go to at the end of the day. The stability of knowing there is a location where you will be able to rest, recuperate, and re-energize is crucial. Benji, a guest at Bethesda Project’s Our Brothers’ Place, agrees. He describes Bethesda Project as a place that has served as his home, a place that he can come back to and regroup and refocus, without fear or worry.
It’s
in the right direction.
“What Bethesda Project’s done for me is it helped me to have more than one outlook on life.”
Bethesda Project gives Benji, and all our guests and residents, stability of shelter so they can focus on healing from the trauma of experiencing homelessness. Bethesda Project’s Our Brothers’ Place may only be temporary, however; he feels safe, happy, and cared for here.
“It has given me a place to rest my head, shower, and do all the fundamental things that I need to do as an adult, while steering me in the right direction.”
given me a place to rest my head, shower, and do all the fundamental things that I need to do as an adult, while steering me
2022 was a year that was full of impactful and inspiring moments, including these highlights:
✔ Continued flexibility and innovation in response to challenges and uncertainties of the pandemic, keeping sites operational while adjusting safety protocols and procedures to minimize COVID-19 outbreaks.
✔ Our reception of a $125,000 grant award from PHL Cares of the Philadelphia Foundation, with the CEO offering remarks at a City press event and attendance at the subsequent Philly Business Journal Partners in Philanthropy event to receive a plaque on behalf of Bethesda Project.
✔ The Connelly Foundation and JMC Fund supported an elevator modernization project at Bethesda Project North Broad, a residence for 49 individuals.
✔ The return of in-person events such as our annual fundraiser, the Party & Auction at Citizens Bank Park with Mike McCann as Honorary Chair. The event raised over $256,000 for our programs and services.
✔ Community partner OUTFRONT Media provided a pro bono city-wide marketing campaign that resulted in 24,620,572 impressions across 8 different digital bulletins in their network.
✔ Amazing acts of generosity. In fiscal year 2022 Bethesda Project received our largest gift from an individual to date, 1 million dollars, from an anonymous donor.
Shifting forward in an ever-changing world.
Equity is essential in every aspect of the work that we do. Representation matters — to us, those we serve, and to our community. This year we invested in not just maintaining but improving equity across our entire organization with some important changes, including:
✔ Increasing our minimum wage to $15.50/hour.
✔ With the support of three key donors, implementing a Staff Appreciation Week, which included solicitation and implementation of staff ideas, organization-wide gift giveaways that honored individual choice, and site-specific budgets for appreciation.
✔ Developing of a COVID-19 Vaccination & Testing Policy and a COVID Relief Pay Policy for staff.
✔ Welcoming four new board members for Fiscal Year 2022 to expand the diversity of the Board and so that it better reflects the population we serve and the Philadelphia community at large.
Ensuring our staff feel respected and valued when coming to work remains a top priority for us in fiscal year 2023.
Volunteers are a crucial part of Bethesda Project. While large events like our Annual Family Picnic and luncheon with The Philadelphia Phillies both remained modified to ensure safety for all involved, we were able to welcome back inperson volunteers in a limited capacity.
Fiscal year 2022 also saw the introduction of the Service Enterprise program. Service Enterprise is a training cohort run through the City of Philadelphia, of which Bethesda Project is an active participant. At the end of our official training, Bethesda Project will receive a program certification. The goal of this initiative is to enhance our existing volunteer program. We are excited to continue utilizing our Service Enterprise training in years to come.
Spotlight: IBX Blue Crew
In May, Independence Blue Cross and the Blue Crew were selected as our Champion of Change Awardee at our Party & Auction. From on-site volunteering to socially distant drop-offs of in-kind goods, the unwavering support from the volunteers in this group is never unnoticed. The Blue Crew alone has dedicated over 350 service hours since the pandemic to help those we serve feel like they are part of a caring community.
