Family Matters
Bethesda Project Announces New CEO
Bethesda Project’s Board of Directors is pleased to announce that longtime employee, Tina Pagotto, has been appointed CEO of the organization. She has been with the organization for over 10 years, having most recently served as Chief Operating Officer. As CEO, Tina will continue to develop and expand Bethesda Project’s relationships, lead and grow fundraising efforts, cultivate and implement strategic initiatives, and manage and oversee the organization’s human and physical assets. Most importantly, she is dedicated to increasing Bethesda Project’s brand awareness in the City of Philadelphia, believing “it’s essential for the community at large to hear about the excellent work of Bethesda Project, and to join us in improving the lives of our most vulnerable citizens.” Through Tina’s service on a number of city-wide committees, she has already significantly raised the organization’s profile in the city. Since 2009, Tina has been a member of the City of Philadelphia’s Continuum of Care (CoC) Advisory Board, and since 2014, she has served as Co-Chair of the Hall Mercer Community Mental Health Center Advisory Council. Project Home’s Associate Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer, Joan McConnon, remarked that “we are proud to call Tina and her Bethesda Project team our valued colleagues in supporting Philadelphia’s homeless community.” Tina graduated Summa Cum Laude from Temple University with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology and a minor in Sociology. She returned to Temple University, where she successfully earned her Master of Social Work Degree. Board member and former Executive Director, Angelo Sgro, says that “there’s no one better prepared to take on this important role at Bethesda Project than Tina!”
What’s Happening at Bethesda Project? Bethesda Project Celebrated it’s 19th Annual Gala & Auction On April 27th, Bethesda Project celebrated its 19th Annual Gala & Auction. The Philadelphia Phillies graciously hosted us again this year in the Diamond Club at Citizens Bank Park. Special guests included Honorary Chair, Ron Donatucci, Esq, Mayor Jim Kenney, Bob Kelly and Karen Hepp of FOX 29’s “Good Day Philadelphia”, SNL alum Joe Piscopo, and legendary Flyers goalie Bernie Parent. Music was provided by students from The Arts Academy at Benjamin Rush. In the end, we raised over $160,000 for direct programs and services to support Philadelphia’s homeless! Thank you to all who attended and supported Bethesda Project! To see pictures from the event click here and here. All pictures are free to download.
A special thanks to our Grand Slam Sponsors, The Philadelphia Phillies and Aramark!
Annual Bethesda Project Family Picnic Each year, Bethesda Project guests and residents from across our 13 sites take a trip out to Ridley Creek State Park to enjoy a day of fun, sun, and summer BBQ. The date for this summer’s picnic is July 20th. Planning a picnic this large is a huge undertaking that the Community Life Department spends countless spring and summer hours to work out every last detail. Coordinating four school busses to transport residents to and from the park, building a goal for a football toss game, planning a route for a scenic nature walk, planning breakfast and lunch, and packing a giant supply truck are just a few parts of this considerable project each year. Despite how much work goes into it, and perhaps because of it, this very special event creates a sense of wellbeing and calm throughout the houses that lasts for weeks, if not months. Staff and residents alike are looking forward to the big day this year, and Community Life needs your help to pull it off! Last year at least 60 volunteers and a dozen generous supporters helped us provide the busses, donated gift cards, chopped salad, grilled burgers, set up food stations, and ran games with our residents and guests. We couldn’t have pulled it off without all the loving support. To volunteer or provide support for this year’s picnic, email Hannah at hlitvin@bethesdaproject.org.
Give Local Greater Philly Tuesday, May 3rd was the first Give Local Greater Philly, a part of Give Local America. We joined thousands of nonprofits nationwide to raise money to help improve local communities. Last year Give Local America raised more than $68 million for local nonprofits across the country and, this year Give Local Greater Philly raised over $11,000 for local nonprofits. Bethesda Project came out on top with the most donations, 25, and total amount raised, $1,323! Thank you to all who donated and stuck with us through some technical difficulties! We look forward to raising even more money next year!
Donor Spotlight: Thanks to our19th Annual Gala & Auction Sponsors! Home Run Sponsor- $5,000
Mr. John M. Ryan & Ms. Mary Gregg
Triple Sponsors-$2,500 1031 Corp International Raw Materials LTD NorthMarq Advisors PJM Interconnection PREIT Title Alliance Wall & Walsh Inc. Wood Mode Wawa Foundation Wills Eye Hospital
Double Sponsor- $1,000 Joseph and April Denny Daylesford Abbey University City Science Center David and Louise Strawbridge Archer & Greiner, P.C. Bill & Donna Oliver Glenn & Jill Bronson Jack Donnelly Meridian Bank Ann Ledger Architect Jim and Dolores Mulvihill Exude Pennsylvania Trust
Double Sponsor- $1,000 Herman Golder Co, Inc. Stephen A. Cozen and the Samuel D. Cozen Memorial Fund Karen Zurlo and Philp Levin Richard F. Nourie Forethought, Inc.
New Program Gives Residents’ Voices a Spotlight A new program has launched at several of Bethesda Project’s sites. Tell Your Story is a volunteer-led writing program that meets at three houses every other week, inspiring residents to think about, write about, and share their unique voices. The sessions start with a passage from published literature or poetry read aloud by someone in the group, and a related writing prompt follows. Sarah Rose Etter, a Philadelphia-based writer and host of several reading series, was the ringleader behind forming the group. After applying to volunteer in any way needed, she spoke with Hannah Litvin, Program Coordinator of Community Life, and learned that Hannah had been trying to find writers to host ongoing workshops with our residents, and sprang into action. She recruited four other working writers in Philadelphia that she knew would want to be involved. The group spent some time building a curriculum and prompt-bank to inspire the residents and, together with Hannah, introduced the program at Bethesda Bainbridge, Sanctuary, and Connelly House. The response has been overwhelmingly positive, most notably with seven of Bainbridge’s men committing to attend the program every other week for three months. One of the first prompts was “write a letter to your younger self” and a resident in the program shared his feelings on this prompt: “It was tough…before I could write a letter to younger me, I had to do some accounting….like inventory…thinking about the decisions I made in the past and where I am today, how I feel about those decisions now,” he said. The five authors rotate to make sure there is never a week with a cancelled workshop due to personal or professional conflicts, and it has been exciting for the residents at the houses to learn from a diverse set of talents. The volunteers provide every participant with their own notebook and a pen to keep throughout the week, and ideas or prompts to think about or write about between each meeting.
Reflections from Sarah Rose Etter: “Tell Your Story is a bi-weekly program that brings creative reading and writing to Bethesda Project. Writing volunteers run hourly sessions at various houses that focus on understanding, writing, sharing, and editing stories based on writing prompts, as well as reading work from outside writers and responding to it. Only a few weeks in, the bond between the writers and the residents is strong. As we work together, we learn about each other, our past struggles, and how we can turn those into writing. There is catharsis in sharing these stories, in giving value to our experiences, and in sharing them with each other. Often, we find the residents share more with the volunteers and each other - and that the volunteers share things about themselves - in a way that creates an additional bond within the Bethesda Community. We are proud to be writers in this community, and honored that the residents of Bethesda Project have welcomed us, share with us, and grow with us.”
Community Life Embraces National Volunteer Week Bethesda Project’s Community Life Department has been working hard to engage our residents and guests in giving thanks to our volunteers. To celebrate of the nationally recognized Volunteer Week, Bethesda Project shared special content each day from April 11th-15th on our Facebook page, and Hannah Litvin, Program Coordinator of Community Life, sent a special email to volunteers each day of National Volunteer Week. At our sites, guests and residents came together to paint banners expressing their gratitude toward volunteers. To see the photos be sure to visit our Facebook page!
Volunteer Spotlight Professionals Build Shelter Guests’ Interview Skills & Confidence On Saturday March 19th, professionals from the LEADERSHIP Philadelphia Core program visited Our Brothers’ Place and provided resume and interview skills coaching. The group of volunteers, which included over ten people, provided ample opportunity for guests to receive individualized attention and assistance from the volunteers. LEADERSHIP Philadelphia is a nonprofit organization that mobilizes and connects the talent of the private sector to serve the community. Their Core Program aims to enhance the civic awareness, leadership skills, and training on nonprofit board positions. Groups of participants from the Core Program are formed for a service project each year, which must involve a certain number of hours of planning and skillful execution, and provide a service to a group or nonprofit in need. Susan Richardson, who led the Core participants who provided the resume and interview skills workshop, had this to say about the experience: “The afternoon spent with the men was great for all of us. It's our hope that it helped the men in some concrete next steps and just plain old encouragement. And on our end, we got to experience how each member was able to share things in his or her own unique way, which helped us get to know each other even better. And the connections among all of us, the presenters as well as those attending, deepen our connection and empathy and let us go back to our own workplaces with a wider perspective."
Spring Golden Broom Award Congratulations to My Brother’s House (MBH) for being the recipients of the spring Golden Broom Award! All the Bethesda Project housing sites competed in a clean-off to see who's location was the tidiest. Floors were mopped, shelves dusted, toilets scrubbed-but only one could be granted the Golden Broom! Board member Angelo Sgro congratulated the men, saying: “I was thrilled with the result of the hard work put in by the men of My Brother’s House in sprucing up the facility. The bones of MBH have seen much use over the last 30 years, and they are tired and creaky. Nevertheless, the men brought the place to life with their effort. It was an uplifting experience for me to see what can be accomplished even with a very modest facility. Well done, guys!!”
The proud men of MBH with Director of Entry-Level Programs, Misty Sparks
About Bethesda Project
1630 South Street Philadelphia, PA 19146 Phone: 215-985-1600 Fax: 215-732-8214 Email: info@bethesdaproject.org www.bethesdaproject.org
Facebook.com/BethesdaProject
Since its inception in 1979, Bethesda Project has created caring communities for homeless and formerly homeless adults in Philadelphia. Bethesda Project is focused on reaching out to those who are not only homeless, but severely isolated from society, typically stemming from untreated chronic mental illness, medical conditions and addiction. Many of these men and women come to Bethesda Project after years of living on the streets, and are extremely reluctant to stay in any type of shelter. Supporting these vulnerable men and women requires long-term relationship building to address the underlying health and personal issues causing homelessness. What makes Bethesda Project unique is the dedication of the staff to treat these individuals as family and work through challenges to ensure that these men and women have a place to call home.
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