by Nicole Acosta | May 12, 2020 | Uncategorized
The Community Foundation commends A Farm Less Ordinary, Loudoun Commission for Women and Girls, Loudoun Youth, Inc., and Project Horse Empowerment Center for recently completing our 2019-2020 Strategic Planning Consortium program. In a year-long program offered as part of our Social Impact Institute, these organizations underwent an in-depth strategic planning process with the assistance of professional consultants from Capacity Partners, Inc. A well-developed strategic plan is an essential tool for nonprofit organizations to advance their missions. Strategic planning consultants provide professional guidance and facilitation to help nonprofit Boards develop their long-range goals, objectives, and strategies. However, smaller organizations often lack the financial resources to acquire quality strategic planning services. The Strategic Planning Consortium program was designed to give small organizations with annual operating budgets of under $500,000 the opportunity to work with professional consultants to develop a full-scale strategic plan. In summer 2019, applications were accepted from qualifying nonprofits that were ready to invest their time and resources in a comprehensive strategic planning process. This program was made possible with grant funding provided by 100WomenStrong and Loudoun County government. As Strategic Planning Consortium program participants, each organization was assigned a skilled consultant from Capacity Partners who helped guide and facilitate a strategic planning process that engaged the organizations’ staff, Board of Directors, and stakeholders. The participating organizations also completed training in strategic planning, and ultimately developed three-year strategic plans that guide their work and missions long-term. “We appreciate the investment these four organizations made by participating in this program,” said Nicole Acosta, director of grants and nonprofit programs at the Community Foundation. “Strategic planning is a challenging but important...
by Nicole Acosta | May 7, 2020 | Uncategorized
The Community Foundation for Loudoun and Northern Fauquier Counties is pleased to announce that we have received a $100,000 grant from Google to support COVID-19 relief efforts in Loudoun County. Funds from Google will be added equally to the Community Foundation’s Community Emergency Relief Fund and Tourism & Hospitality Relief Fund. The Community Foundation challenges our neighbors, places of worship, HOAs, businesses and community members everywhere to match Google’s generosity. “Help us leverage Google’s extraordinarily generous gift to Loudoun County by matching it dollar for dollar,” said Community Foundation President Amy Owen. “A matching gift to the Community Emergency Relief Fund or Tourism & Hospitality Fund doubles the impact. Those of us who are still employed and safe in our homes share that security with our neighbors who have so much less. The needs are right here in front of us, and they are huge.” “Google is pleased to be working with the Community Foundation on such a worthwhile and important program in this time of need,” said Liz Schwab, Head of External Affairs for Google in Virginia. “With families and safety net providers struggling with the effects of COVID-19, this is a vital time for us to look out for those in need.” The Community Emergency Relief Fund (CERF) was to established accept and strategically disburse funding to address COVID-19 emergency response and relief efforts to households in need as well as to shore up human-service nonprofit organizations experiencing financial loss. Subsequently, Visit Loudoun Foundation established a Tourism &Hospitality Relief Fund to provide financial relief to tourism and hospitality workers experiencing income losses. “The impact to Loudoun’s tourism...
by Nicole Acosta | May 6, 2020 | Uncategorized
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Yesterday, we asked for your help. Our community and our nonprofits needed you. You rose to the occasion. You showed up for our community in the best way possible. A record-breaking $604,232 for 87 nonprofits who will use those dollars to help our community stay healthy, safe, and beautiful—all thanks to your generosity. Today, we express our gratitude for your generosity; our appreciation for the hard work of our local nonprofits; and our amazement at what’s possible when we all work together to lift our community. Thank you for making this community a great place to grow up and grow old. P.S. Want to see our final Give Choose results? Check out the Leaderboard...
by Nicole Acosta | May 1, 2020 | Uncategorized
To give during Give Choose on May 5, visit: www.givechoose.org
by Nicole Acosta | Apr 27, 2020 | Uncategorized
The following was written by Kirsten Langhorne, who serves on the Community Foundation’s Board of Directors, as part of our Board Perspective blog series. I became a bit of a prepper the day I became a mother. I stockpiled diapers, baby food, and onesies. Y2K brought jugged water and cases of Mac and Cheese. But this spring has brought me to a whole new level of anxiety about being prepared. If I were courageous enough to screenshot my Amazon Orders history and its middle-of-the-night orders delivered far and wide, I would reveal a window into my COVID-crisis soul. For weeks, awakening after a few hours, I’d pull up the news on my phone and responded to some new scare. A report suggests Ibuprofen worsens some COVID symptoms? Tylenol is on the way. There might be food shortages? 10 lb. lentil bags will carry us over. We are buried in Amazon boxes that have brought us necessities and excessive precautions alike. My family is as prepared as we can be. Now it is time for me to focus my concern and spending on our many neighbors who have not had the luxury to soothe their COVID anxieties through the efficiencies of online shopping. The community members who are watching every dollar to keep their families fed and sheltered need attention. The organizations critical to the welfare of our elderly or are sheltering abused women and children of caring for abandoned animals are facing harder times than they ever contemplated. Thankfully, Give Choose is up and running and is a wonderful way to get out of our own heads and help...
by Nicole Acosta | Apr 21, 2020 | Uncategorized
Schedule your donations in advance! Visit givechoose.org during our early giving period to schedule your donations in advance of the big day on May 5th. Donations may be pre-scheduled April 21st-March 4th. Our nonprofits need your support now more than ever. What is Give Choose? Give Choose is a 24-hour day of giving organized by the Community Foundation for Loudoun and Northern Fauquier Counties to benefit local charities serving our community. The goal: inspire our community to come together to give generously to charities that make our community the best place to grow up and grow old. During Loudoun’s GiveChoose.org online giving event, the average gift is $134. But, with as little as $10, you will make a difference for your chosen charity. With more than 80 local nonprofit organizations participating, anyone can find a cause to support. Give Choose takes place on May 5, 2020, beginning midnight and ending 11:59 p.m. And, thanks to our generous sponsors, we will award prizes to charities hitting special benchmarks throughout the 24-hour period of giving. Donating to your local nonprofits through givechoose.org is a great way to be part of Giving Tuesday on May 5th. We’re all in this together as we overcome the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Help make our community one of the most generous in...
by Amy Owen | Apr 20, 2020 | Uncategorized
Should you help someone in need? How much should you donate to that someone, especially when you know your gift can save a life, teach someone to read, help them get a job, take care of their child, share the joy of music and art, or enhance the community fabric that makes ours one of the best to grow up and grow old? During Loudoun’s GiveChoose.org online giving event, the average gift is $134. GiveChoose.org is our community’s day of charitable giving celebrated on Giving Tuesday, May 5th. Early giving starts April 21st. More than 80 charities have united together to share their stories and invite your choice to give a gift of as little as $10. Sometimes, our community needs to come forward and support a common goal. This is one of those times. Now more than ever. The Richmond-based Center for Nonprofit Excellence has shared preliminary details of a very recent survey of nonprofit organizations as a result of COVID-19: Thirty-five percent of nonprofits are experiencing a drop in donations and 47 percent anticipate a drop in the coming weeks. Dozens of local charities canceled or postponed events and galas. Corks for a Cause, traditionally held but canceled in early April, generated $20,000 for Loudoun Abused Women’s Shelter. For many Loudoun charities, special events generate as much as 15% or more of the organization’s annual income—now lost. More than half nonprofits are experiencing a decrease in client usage of services or programs, with 62 percent experiencing a decrease in earned revenue/income for their charitable work. For example, Lansdowne-based Blue Ridge Speech and Hearing provides services to fit folks...
by Nicole Acosta | Apr 11, 2020 | Uncategorized
The following was written by Matt Durham, who serves on the Community Foundation’s Board of Directors, as part of our new Board Perspective blog series. Preserve Our Community Just a few days prior to the COVID-19 pandemic dramatically changed all our lives, the Community Foundation for Loudoun and Northern Fauquier Counties met for its scheduled Board of Directors meeting. We were all aware of the danger that COVID-19 presented and assumed that our government agencies would begin to enact ever more aggressive measures to slow the spread of the virus and to protect us. The idea of social distancing was just starting to become known. We sat further apart from each other than we usually do and worried collectively about what would come. Our Foundation President and CEO Amy Owen presented us with a compelling idea, which was to start an emergency relief fund to help those affected by the coming crisis. These funds are traditionally used to address natural disasters—recovery from flooding, tornadoes, snowstorms and the like—and the idea to help people whose wages were impacted by a global pandemic was novel. After some education and discussion, our Board unanimously approved the proposal and created the Community Emergency Relief Fund. At the same time, I was working closely with the staff of my other volunteer effort to determine how we should respond to the threat COVID-19 presented us. I am also the president of a local homeowners association (HOA), an HOA that is very large—about 6700 homes with well over 20,000 residents. Our management staff and I took steps to close the HOA amenities as well as postponing...
by Nicole Acosta | Apr 9, 2020 | Uncategorized
Thanks to the generosity and compassion of our community members, fund holders, and businesses, we have raised $58,000 through our Community Emergency Relief Fund. Today we announce our first grant from the Community Emergency Relief Fund: a $25,000 grant to Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Arlington, in support of a collaboration between Catholic Charities’ Loudoun office and Loudoun Cares. Funding will provide monetary assistance directly to individuals in Loudoun County impacted financially by the COVID-19 crisis. The Community Foundation made a secondary $25,000 grant from its Tourism and Hospitality Relief Fund founded by the Visit Loudoun Foundation to provide financial assistance to those underemployed or unemployed individuals. Callers can seek support through the Loudoun Cares and Catholic Charities collaboration. While we know that these first grants will be a tremendous support to many people, the needs we will see in the upcoming weeks and months will be significant. We ask for your continued support. Catholic Charities and Loudoun Cares will jointly rotate staff to respond to requests for financial assistance through a newly established COVID-19 Emergency Fund and Helpline. Loudoun residents who need help paying rent as a result of lost wages from the COVID-19 crisis can call the COVID-19 Emergency Fund and Helpline at 703-669-50409. Trained staff from Catholic Charities and Loudoun Cares will work together to complete an intake process and assess the needs of each caller. Eligibility requirements to receive financial assistance from the COVID-19 Emergency Fund and Helpline may be found at https://www.ccda.net/need-help/rent,-utility-assistance,-and-basic-household-needs/. Eligible callers may be able to receive up to $500 in financial assistance. In addition to providing financial assistance, Catholic Charities and...
by Nicole Acosta | Apr 3, 2020 | Uncategorized
The following was written by Connie Moore, who serves on the Community Foundation’s Board of Directors, as part of our new Board Perspective blog series. People of Faith: It’s Our Time to Help In the short time since Loudoun County’s first COVID-19 case was diagnosed on March 10th, the disease has spread rapidly. There were 121 cases as of April 2nd – a 40% increase in just the last 48 hours. And government officials and health experts are now steeling us for steep increases over the next 2-3 weeks. We are all filled with concern about the suffering of the sick and their families, and the loss of life, and that concern extends to everyone in our community at large. The human and economic toll in Loudoun and northern Fauquier counties is extremely high and increases each day. People are unable to work, small businesses struggle to stay afloat, and our economy is coming to a standstill. The unprecedented strain on the region’s social safety net (food, housing, income, childcare, etc.) is why the Community Foundation for Loudoun and Northern Fauquier Counties (CFLNFC) moved so quickly to establish the COVID-19 Emergency Fund. This pandemic is creating a huge challenge for people of all faiths. We collectively wonder, “how can we best help people – our neighbors – who are hurting throughout our community?” In normal times, we consider stewardship in terms of donating “time, talent and treasure,” with “time” frequently translating to volunteering with groups such as Loudoun Hunger Relief, Habitat for Humanity, and Tree of Life. But the highly contagious nature of this virus makes it almost impossible for...
