GET CONNECTED with our CHURCH FAMILY … responding to human need

FALLS CHURCH HOMELESS SHELTER

The Falls Church Homeless Shelter provides warm beds, meals, and counseling to the homeless during the winter months. The shelter began operations in January 1996 and is open from November through April to provide temporary shelter, emergency housing, counseling, life skills classes, and other services to assist individual adults

How can you help?

  • Provide hot meals and deliver them to the shelter in the evening
  • Prepare and deliver breakfast items, bagged lunches, and staples for the week, such as milk, juice, breat, fruit, and snacks,
  • Donate cleaning supplies
  • Volunteer to help staff the shelter in the evenings.

SECOND STORY

Second Story provides a wide range of programs and services to supporting at-risk youth, young single mothers, and under-served neighborhoods of Fairfax County.

How can we help?  The Lewinsville congregation always has generously supported Second Story’s different support programs to Teens in Crisis, to Young Mothers, and to the local Community Outreach Centers.  Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, they now have some particularly urgent needs to locate additional housing space for youth in crisis and for a specific list of non-cash items.  PLEASE CLICK HERE for more details about what’s needed and who’s being served. 

Items can be shipped or dropped off to 2100 Gallows Rd, Vienna, VA 22182. If you’re dropping them off please text 703.217.5205 and then you may simply leave your items on the doorstep. If you’re shipping your donation directly, please include a note with your order including your name and email address if you would like to receive a donation receipt.

During this time of crisis, many in the congregation have asked how they can help others and continue to stay safe by taking advised precautions against the coronavirus.  Please consider helping our mission partners with a donation so that they may continue to serve.

SHARE

SHARE meets the emergency needs of our neighbors in McLean and nearby.  The groups SHARE serves include the working poor, disabled persons, the homeless, recent immigrants, and the elderly as well as those facing a crisis such as illness, job loss or other family emergency. Share is in need of grocery items for its clients. Below is an updated list of what is needed.  Food items for SHARE can be dropped in the outdoor sheds at the McLean Baptist Church, 1367 Chain Bridge Road, McLean, VA, 22101.   

  • Vegetable oil (24 oz, 48 oz) 
  • Laundry detergent (15 – 32 loads) 
  • Canned vegetables (corn, peas, etc)
  • Canned tomato products (diced, sauce, etc)
  • Canned proteins (chicken, luncheon meat, tuna) 
  • Canned or dry beans (black, kidney, etc)
  • Snacks/granola bars 
  • Cereal
  • Peanut butter (10 – 20 oz)
  • Jam/jelly
  • Spaghetti/pasta (1 lb) 
  • Pasta sauce (cans or plastic jars) 
  • Ramen noodles 
  • Meal helpers/Side dishes 
  • Soup 
  • Diapers (sizes 5, 6, pull-ups) 
  • Baby wipes 
  • Feminine hygiene (panty liners -> maxi pads) (14 – 18 ct) 
  • Paper towels 
  • Toilet Paper 

Reminder: Please NO GLASS and NO OVER-SIZED items. Please no items past their best-if used by date. Note: Share would welcome paper shopping bags (grocery) with intact handles and re-usable grocery size bags. Request: If anyone has fresh produce to donate, either home-grown or purchased, please contact sharevolunteers1367@gmail.com to arrange for a personal drop-off. For other ways to help, please visit  https://www.shareofmclean.org

L’ARCHE OF GREATER WASHINGTON

L’Arche operates four group homes for their local clients and support volunteers.  Activities in which the public might visit and participate are curtailed due to the COVID-19 isolation.  However, they have many out-of-the-ordinary expenses that would benefit from your supporting financial donation.  Remember that L’Arche participates in the Amazon Smile program, in which Amazon donates 0.5% of your qualified purchases to the charity of your choice.  If you frequently shop with Amazon, those purchases can provide a sizeable financial benefit to your charity.  Details of the program can be found at http://smile.amazon.com.  This donation cost you nothing as an Amazon shopper.

For more information, please contact Jan Jacewicz at jcjacewicz@gmail.com

FALLS CHURCH-McLEAN CHILDREN’S CENTER

There is great news to share with you about the McLean-Falls Church Children’s Center.  From their mid-July reopening with 20 students, their enrollment is now 42.  They expect to have 50 students by mid-September.  That’s a comfort to the Center staff for making their payroll, and more-so for the parents who depend on the Children’s Center reliable and nurturing care for their pre-K children.

One marvelous aspect of the Falls Church-McLean Children’s Center program is the Nutrition Program.  Each day every student is served a nutritious lunch, along with healthy snacks during their morning and afternoon breaks.  Children sit in small groups with their teachers, who model and encourage good table manners during the meal. The Good Food Company of Arlington provides healthy meals with plenty of variety. Meals are served “family style,” allowing children to pass food to one another and pour their own milk. Children practice taking turns in conversations and self-help skills as they serve themselves.

The Center seeks to find people and groups willing to sponsor the program for a week, at a cost of $300 – and several individuals and groups at Lewinsville and other faith communities have generously made that commitment.  Still, at this time there are 20 (of 50) weeks needing sponsors.  If you (or your group) can help meet their need at any level, a lot of good would happen.  If you donate via the Children’s Center website, please be sure to designate the Nutrition Program.  As always, we greatly appreciate your support for this important mission partner.

WESTGATE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

Many have asked how they can help support the students at Westgate Elementary School during this time of uncertainty and distance learning. Lewinsville has partnered with Westgate for several years to support its back-to school backpack program as well as help food assistance for students and families in need.  Thanks to Lewinsville’s partnership with Westgate it is now a site for Fairfax County’s breakfast and lunch meal program; 120 students will continue to receive this support during the school year.  

How We Can Help! Provide grocery store gift cards from Safeway, Aldi or Giant in suggested denominations of $50.00 and $100.00.

Grateful thanks to all for your generous giving for this special outreach program that seeks to provide much needed help to low income families living in our neighborhood. Questions/Contact: Karen Siple (Karen.siple@cox.net) or Carol Kaffenberger (ckaffenb@gmail.com)

SHEPHERD’S CENTER OF McLEAN-ARLINGTON-FALLS CHURCH

Shepherd’s Center volunteers provide “no cost to client” services to older adults, typically for transportation to medical appointments, the grocery store and pharmacy.  The need for service always exceeds the volunteer pool – particularly due to the COVID-19 isolation.  If you feel you can safely drive one of their clients on a local trip, that service would be a valued gift.  With fewer people willing to drive, they’ve expanded their Friendly Caller program, whereby volunteers are paired with a client who wishes to have a friendly visit by phone periodically.  That is a great need, as many of our clients are living alone and feel very isolated during this pandemic.  And of course, your cash contribution is always welcomed at http://scmafc.org/

HOMESTRETCH

Homestretch is THE local nonprofit that empowers homeless parents with children to move from homelessness to financial independence and long-term stability. Through Homestretch’s 30-year history of unbelievable success working with homeless parents with children, they continue to do Incredible work leading to Amazing results. Case in point, Homestretch has over a 90% success rate getting their families to be fully independent following a two-year re-entry program – the highest results in the country.  Homestretch saves lives, re-creates families and sets a foundation like no other for self-empowerment.  And Homestretch needs the community’s help now more than ever.  

The novel Coronavirus has hit our homeless families especially hard.  In fact, many Homestretch families in our community have lost jobs, experienced personal setbacks, and have limited access to food and other necessities. There are TWO ways you can help:

First, Homestretch families need grocery store gift cards, VISA gift cards, Uber gift cards, diapers, wipes, paper towels, and toilet paper. CLICK HERE to download the flyer for how to help!

LEWINSVILLE RETIREMENT RESIDENCE

Lewinsville Retirement Residence (LRR) waived the April meal service fee residents pay so the residents have additional financial resources available for emergencies during the Covid-19 pandemic.  The cost of this action is about $35,000 per month. 

How can we help?  To help offset this cost, please consider making a donation of any amount to: Friends of The Lewinsville, Treasurer, 1515 Great Falls St., McLean, VA 22101 with a note that the donation is for “meal program subsidy.”  A tax receipt will be provided for your donation.

MIRIAM’S KITCHEN

Miriam’s Kitchen serves the Homeless in Washington D.C by providing meals, permanent housing, and supportive services. They have helped house more than 1,570 veterans since 2013! During this Covid-19 Pandemic, they are still serving meals using DHS guidelines with 75 emergency volunteers. But additional help is needed, and you can help in these ways:

  1. Support our emergency response efforts at www.miriamskitchen.org/helpnow 
  2. We need fresh fruit and creamers and plasticware. Check out our Meals Program COVID-19 Amazon Wishlist  
  3. Tell your friends and family so they can support us too. 
  4. We can always use more masks and hand sanitizer. 

VIRTUAL VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

Our Mission & Service team has compiled a list of virtual volunteer opportunities which cover a very large range of activities … and you can help while staying safe in your home! We’ve broken up the list into categories. Click on a category of interest to you to open the volunteer list in a new tab/window:

If you have questions, please contact Joe Parisi