Assistance League of Northern Virginia has a lot to celebrate this year! We mark not only the 20th anniversary of our establishment as a chapter of the National Assistance League organization, but 14 years of providing meals for children who might otherwise go hungry on weekends, and a 12-year partnership with Dominion Energy.
From our formation in 2004, we’ve grown and expanded our programs and our ability to help students at Title 1 elementary schools in the community. Our philanthropic programs attempt to address the needs of the total child. Therefore, we provide food, clothing, sneakers, hygiene items, books and literacy support to the most vulnerable children in the community. We have garnered honors and recognition for our efforts.
Our most ambitious program is Weekend Food for Kids, by which we provide shelf-stable food to 6 elementary schools to ensure that students have food to eat on weekends when school-supplied meals are not available. We began that program on a small scale in 2010, with our members packing and delivering a few bags for a few schools and it continues today. So, 2024 marks 14 years of helping students come to school on Mondays with their stomachs full so they can focus on learning.
In 2012, we began a partnership with Dominion Energy that enabled us to increase both the number of food bags we provide and the number of schools we serve. That partnership allows us to use Dominion’s facilities in Herndon for this effort. Dominion employees help pack the bags and break down boxes for recycling. Dominion also provides their trucks and drivers to deliver the food bags. We now deliver 1720 food bags each month in the school year to 3 schools in Prince William County and 3 in Fairfax County. We could not provide that level of coverage without the substantial assistance we receive from Dominion. We are forever grateful for our 12 years of partnering with Dominion and hope that continues for another dozen years, at least.
To get an idea about the impressive logistics of one of our food packings and the joy participants have helping with this important program, check out the video that Peggy Fox and Dominion recently produced.
