COMMUNITY IMPACT
CENTERING OUR COMMUNITY THROUGH COMMUNITY GRANTS
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unior League of Washington (JLW) members make tremendous contributions annually to organizational fundraising efforts, allowing the League to have a vibrant philanthropic presence in the Washington, DC community. In turn, the Targeted Grants & Volunteer Resources Committee (TGVRC) manages and allots those contributions to create volunteer placement opportunities and award JLW grants to community service organizations. With outstanding leadership from Chair Courtney Davis, the 2021-2022 TGVRC awarded seven $2,000 Opportunity Grants to the following deserving organizations. IMAGINATION LIBRARY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY Organization Mission: As a local affiliate of the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, the Imagination Library of Montgomery County works to improve early childhood literacy and foster child/caregiver bonding by providing one book per month for free to children from birth to age five in select zip codes. Grant Use: The organization plans to provide 951 books to children in select zip codes of Montgomery County who are enrolled in the Dolly Parton Imagination Library. JUBILEE JUMPSTART Organization Mission: Jubilee Jumpstart works to prepare young children (newborns through age five) from low-income families for success in school and life through dual-language, evidence-based care, and early education programs that are focused on their social and emotional well-being, in partnership with families, educators, and the community. Grant Use: It intends to provide 432 books for 72 children participating in the Family Literacy Program in order to build and replenish the at-home libraries of these children for the benefit of their whole family. LOCAL MOTION PROJECT Organization Mission: Local Motion Project brings people together in dynamic, collective movement experiences that
Kertisha Dixon affect personal growth and social change by engaging with people through education, participation, and observation. Grant Use: With its grant, Local Motion Project will provide for the production and distribution of 10 creative movement videos for children ages three to five. These videos weave elements of dance (body, action, space, time, and energy) with early literacy skills including letter recognition, print motivation, print awareness, vocabulary development, and phonological awareness. Each video is an age-appropriate length of five to 10 minutes and offers teachers the chance to reinforce key concepts throughout the day. This Opportunity Grant also provides a professional development workshop for Alexandria City Public Schools teaching staff. THE SPITFIRE CLUB (TSC) Organization Mission: TSC works to build an inclusive community around diverse, girl-positive books to enhance participants’ literacy and social-emotional skills, bolstered by small group reading support, home library building, and caregiver engagement in reading for pre-K through fifth grade girls. Grant Use: TSC will use its grant to fund 20% of the pilot of TSC’s Parent/Child Reading Workshops for 400 children, including books for home libraries, activity materials, and workshop facilitators for 30 sessions. BRIDGES TO INDEPENDENCE (BRIDGES) Organization Mission: Bridges’ goal is to lead individuals and families out of homelessness and into stable and independent futures. Bridges’ vision of breaking intergenerational cycles of poverty is carried out by supportive service offerings focused on workforce development and assists families in obtaining jobs offering a livable wage, acquiring certifications, and/or furthering their education. Bridges’ employment managers provide individualized support and work with families on many levels including resume support, interviewing prep, sharing job leads, and more. Grant Use: Bridges’ funds will go towards supporting a portion of families’ employ-
ment needs, including obtaining technology and professional clothing, gift cards for transportation to job interviews or training, and enrollment for employment training, certifications, and ESL classes. FRIENDS OF GUEST HOUSE, INC. (GUEST HOUSE) Organization Mission: Guest House provides formerly incarcerated women the structure, supervision, support, and assistance they need to move beyond who they were to become who they want to be. Since 1974, Guest House has served as the only prison-to-community residential re-entry program in Northern Virginia. Guest House’s overarching goal is to increase the number of formerly incarcerated women who successfully re-enter their communities by addressing the key areas that influence their path to successful re-entry. Grant Use: Guest House intends to purchase equipment needed to ensure full participation in the Workforce and Life Development program by all Guest House clients. MY SISTER’S PLACE (MSP) Organization Mission: MSP shelters, supports, and empowers survivors of domestic violence and their children while providing leadership and education to build a supportive community. Participants work with case managers to identify areas in which they desire additional support to gain full independence. MSP also helps participants identify individual barriers impacting long-term stability and provide or connect them with supportive services. Grant Use: MSP will support shelter clients by providing access to individual or group workforce development sessions to 28 individuals with the goal of gaining employment, placement into a job-training program, or placement into an educational program. This grant will also support 30 transitional housing clients as they participate in the permanent housing program RISE, which includes case management and budgeting classes to support their progress towards self-sufficiency. •
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