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The StepALIVE! Walkathon is back in Old Town on October 16

Get your sneakers and sweats ready, because Alexandria nonprofit ALIVE! is hosting its 41st annual StepALIVE! Walkathon in Old Town on Sunday, October 16.

There are already 33 walking teams assembled, including Team Shiba, for this year’s five-mile charity walk.

The fundraising goal is $80,000, and $32,000 has already been raised.

Proceeds will support ALIVE!’s family assistance program, which helps Alexandria families pay for rent and other bills.

The event starts and finishes at First Christian Church (2723 King Street), and begins at 1:15 p.m. with on-site registration and a T-shirt pickup. The walk itself starts at 2 p.m., and is followed by a celebration from 3:30 to 4:40 p.m.

It costs $25 for individual walkers to participate ($30 at the event), $10 for seniors and children ages six to 13, and free for kids under six.

Via Alive!/Facebook

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Volunteers needed at Torpedo Factory Art Center and more than a dozen Alexandria nonprofits

There are a number of ways to volunteer in Alexandria this fall.

Art lovers can get their fix by volunteering as gallery guides at the Torpedo Factory Art Center, and sports enthusiasts can become volunteer sport coaches. The Carlyle House also needs a volunteer tour guide.

There are also a number of tutoring and mentoring positions available, in addition to available food distributor and donation sorting positions.

“We need hundreds of people per week,” Volunteer Alexandria Executive Director Marion Brunken told ALXnow. “More people are in need now than ever.”

Here’s a list of Volunteer Alexandria’s new and upcoming opportunities.

  • Teach Kids to Read — “Wright to Read is a literacy tutoring-mentoring program that works to match volunteer tutor-mentors with Alexandria City Public School students who need extra support in their literacy skills. Our goal is not only to help give this child support along their reading journey (including access to books, resources, and a larger reading community), but also a mentor through elementary school and beyond.”
  • Distribute Food With ALIVE! — “Volunteers are needed to assist with multiple programs relating to their Food Program, ALIVE! House, and Alexandria Eviction Prevention Partnership Program will distribute food at Mobile Pop-ups and Truck to Trunk events, etc.”
  • More opportunities at ALIVE! — The nonprofit also needs drivers, a furniture moving attendant, and warehouse volunteers.
  • Theater group needs support — Momentum Collective is looking for a new board member, a costume designer and a set builder.
  • Youth Sport Coaches — Preside over team activities including all scheduled practices and games. Adhere to RPCA policies, rules and objectives Responsible for maintaining care of all RPCA Sports equipment. Lead by example among team parents to support the responsibilities of the referee and league leadership. Coach an assigned group of children and focus on skill development, safety, fair, play, sportsmanship and fun.”
  • 4-H Youth Development Club Volunteers — “We are currently looking for volunteers that would like to build clubs on any topic of interest, such as, dogs, sewing, robotics, or sports.”
  • Food Rescuer — “Food rescuers pick up surplus food from food donors in Northern Virginia and the District of Columbia (businesses, restaurants and grocers) and deliver it directly to receiving agencies (community kitchens, food pantries, etc.) that feed our hungry neighbors. In your own vehicle and on your own time, it usually takes only 30 to 60 minutes to complete this incredibly rewarding and essential mission. Get started on the website and app to see the complete schedule of local food rescue opportunities.”
  • Arise outreach volunteer — “ARISE is a new guaranteed income pilot program that plans to give $500 a month to 170 City of Alexandria residents for two years. A research team will evaluate the ARISE program outcomes which will inform future efforts and policy decisions.”
  • Sexual Assault Center Hotline Advocate — “Volunteers staff the 24-hour hotline on evenings and weekends. Volunteers provide accompaniment, emotional support, crisis intervention, advocacy, and referrals to empower survivors of sexual violence in person at the hospital/police department or over the phone. Volunteers must attend a 40-hour training.”
  • Shelter Supervisors with Alexandria Domestic Violence Program — “As a program that operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, volunteers play a key role in providing services to those affected by domestic violence. Volunteers with our program interact personally with individuals in need–an opportunity that many find extremely fulfilling.”
  • Alexandria Library opportunities — The Alexandria Library needs a volunteer to run a games program for seniors, a volunteer with the Trash Trekkers program, a Knit Night volunteer, a computer class volunteer, and gardening support.
  • Tour Guide at Carlyle House Historic Park — “Looking for a fun and relaxing volunteer opportunity? Carlyle House Historic Park, a colonial house museum in Old Town Alexandria, seeks volunteer docents to give public tours of this historic building. Carlyle House, built in 1753, interprets the home and family of John Carlyle, a merchant and town founder.”
  • Sixth Annual Spooky Science Expo — “The Watergate at Landmark Youth Committee will be holding its sixth annual science event (Spooky Mad Science Expo) for kids and teens (October 15). The event will celebrate science and Halloween… As in every year, we are looking for volunteers to help us plan and run the event.”
  • Casa Chirilagua Volunteers — Casa Chirilagua is looking for one-on-one mentoring, their kids club, a volunteer to oversee the teen study hall, help with the high school program, a volunteer for teen bible study, and assistance with their middle school program.
  • Dog adoption event needs volunteers — “Lucky Dog Animal Rescue has an adoption event the FIRST Sunday of every month at the Potomac Yard PetSmart – 3351 Richmond Hwy, Alexandria, VA 22305. Come spend the afternoon with a Lucky Dog!”
  • Torpedo Factory Gallery Guide — “Gallery Guides must feel comfortable interacting with the public about the work at the exhibition with potentially sensitive content and handling artwork sale inquiries. Gallery Guides must be at least 18 years of age or older.”
  • Food and grocery volunteer — “For over 15+ years, as part of its Outreach Ministry, the Meade Memorial Episcopal Church has been committed to the Emergency Food Assistance Ministry, to help transform our community, our neighbors, and ourselves. The church provides lunches to residents from 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. We need help to setup tables and distribute lunches every weekday, except on certain holidays. We are asking all volunteers to arrive at 11: 15 a.m.”
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ALIVE! hosting grocery distributions this weekend for Alexandrians in need

Alexandria non-profit ALIVE! is hosting grocery distributions for Alexandrians in need this weekend.

Over the last few years, ALIVE! has stepped up its food distribution program for locals, with drive-through and walk-up distributions.

This Saturday, Aug. 27, the distribution will run from 8:30-10:30 a.m.

Drive-through distributions are planned for:

  • Cora Kelly Elementary School (3600 Commonwealth Avenue)
  • NYCC Alexandria Campus (parking lot B-1, via 500 Dawes Avenue)

Walk-up distributions are scheduled for:

  • Cora Kelly Elementary School (3600 Commonwealth Avenue)
  • William Ramsay Recreation Center (5650 Sanger Avenue)

ALIVE! accepts food donations at the ALIVE! Food Warehouse (801 S Payne Street) Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. (closing at 7 p.m. on Thursdays).

The non-profit is accepting the following food types in personal, non-bulk portions:

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The Torpedo Factory Art Center needs volunteers, and so do a lot of organizations in Alexandria

There are still a number of ways to volunteer in Alexandria this summer.

Art and music lovers can get their fix by volunteering as gallery guides at the Torpedo Factory Art Center or as ushers with the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra.

As the upcoming school year gets in gear, there are also a number of tutoring and mentoring positions available, in addition to available food distributor and donation sorting positions.

“We need hundreds of people per week,” Volunteer Alexandria Executive Director Marion Brunken told ALXnow. “More people are in need now than ever.”

Here’s a list of Volunteer Alexandria’s new and upcoming opportunities.

  • Teach Kids to Read — “Wright to Read is a literacy tutoring-mentoring program that works to match volunteer tutor-mentors with Alexandria City Public School students who need extra support in their literacy skills. Our goal is not only to help give this child support along their reading journey (including access to books, resources, and a larger reading community), but also a mentor through elementary school and beyond.”
  • Distribute Food With ALIVE! — “Volunteers are needed to assist with multiple programs relating to their Food Program, ALIVE! House, and Alexandria Eviction Prevention Partnership Program will distribute food at Mobile Pop-ups and Truck to Trunk events, etc.”
  • Help Provide Meals to Children — “Alexandria City Public School (ACPS) will provide two days worth of breakfast and lunch meals with a snack pack free for any enrolled ACPS student on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Friday distribution will include a meal(s) for Saturday. Volunteers will meet at various schools to assist with packing boxes and loading buses with boxed meals. Then, volunteers will ride the bus along to distribute the meals while on site at a few ACPS mobile pop-up locations. Click on each location to sign up: Francis C. Hammond Middle School, Alexandria City High School, or Jefferson Houston School.”
  • Theater group needs support — Momentum Collective is looking for a new board member, a costume designer and a set builder.
  • Youth Sport Coaches — Preside over team activities including all scheduled practices and games. Adhere to RPCA policies, rules and objectives Responsible for maintaining care of all RPCA Sports equipment. Lead by example among team parents to support the responsibilities of the referee and league leadership. Coach an assigned group of children and focus on skill development, safety, fair, play, sportsmanship and fun.”
  • 4-H Youth Development Club Volunteers — “We are currently looking for volunteers that would like to build clubs on any topic of interest, such as, dogs, sewing, robotics, or sports.”
  • Food Rescuer — “Food rescuers pick up surplus food from food donors in Northern Virginia and the District of Columbia (businesses, restaurants and grocers) and deliver it directly to receiving agencies (community kitchens, food pantries, etc.) that feed our hungry neighbors. In your own vehicle and on your own time, it usually takes only 30 to 60 minutes to complete this incredibly rewarding and essential mission. Get started on the website and app to see the complete schedule of local food rescue opportunities.”
  • Senior Services of Alexandria’s Meals on Wheels — “Meals on Wheels provides meals to seniors who are unable to leave their homes to shop, or have difficulty preparing a meal, to have two healthy meals a day delivered to their homes.”
  • Senior Services of Alexandria’s groceries to go – “Shop for and deliver groceries every other week to home-bound seniors who live within the City of Alexandria. You will be paired with a senior, who will provide you with their grocery list.”
  • Sexual Assault Center Hotline Advocate — “Volunteers staff the 24-hour hotline on evenings and weekends. Volunteers provide accompaniment, emotional support, crisis intervention, advocacy, and referrals to empower survivors of sexual violence in person at the hospital/police department or over the phone. Volunteers must attend a 40-hour training.”
  • Teacher positions at Friends of Guest House — “Friends of Guest House – Various Teacher Positions Dedicated volunteers needed to teach various subjects and skills classes to women. The ideal volunteer will be patient and interested in the success of these women as they further their knowledge. Volunteers are also needed to assist with vaccination pods and instruct substance abuse, addiction, and recovery classes. To register and learn more click HERE.”
  • Torpedo Factory Gallery Guide — “Gallery Guides must feel comfortable interacting with the public about the work at the exhibition with potentially sensitive content and handling artwork sale inquiries. Gallery Guides must be at least 18 years of age or older.”
  • Casa Chirilagua Volunteers — Casa Chirilagua is looking for one-on-one mentoring, their kids club, a volunteer to oversee the teen study hall, help with the high school program, a volunteer for teen bible study, and assistance with their middle school program.
  • ESL Parental Support — “We are looking for volunteers that will play, read and lead activities for children while their parent particapates in ESL. This program would take place on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10-noon. Parents will be present in the same room. All volunteers would need to be background checked and provide vaccination documentation.”
  • Weekly Garden Maintenance — “Volunteers needed to help with the maintenance of this beautiful 25-acre site on the Potomac River. Located just north of Mt. Vernon on the GW Parkway, River Farm is the headquarters for the American Horticultural Society, a national non-profit. Activities include planting, mulching, weeding, pruning, and any other garden-related weekly projects.”
  • Donations sorting — “Join the UpCycle team and help sort and prep donations to go out into the shop. UpCycle has a constantly evolving inventory of materials and supplies based on the donations we receive from businesses and residents, no two days are ever the same. Our Donations and Materials Handlers sort and shelve donations, assess the overall organization of the shop, and ensure that the donations we accept are clean and damage free.”
  • Learn & PlayGroup Flier Delivery — “Each week, we play, sing songs, read books, and learn together! This program is available for FREE to all City of Alexandria families with young children. But we need help getting the word out! We need volunteers willing to go to parks, grocery stores, laundromats, etc to post flyers so residents know it’s available! You will be provided with a list of locations and an area to distribute and post flyers to along with any supplies needed to post flyers. We need these distributed and posted a few weeks before our program year starts the week of August 29th.”
  • Alexandria Symphony Orchestra — “The ASO needs your help to usher at performances and perform other duties. You can watch the performance once patrons are seated. Come hear this great orchestra if you love symphony.”
  • Job counselor at Together We Bake — “Are you looking for a meaningful way to get involved with TWB? We are recruiting volunteers to act as Job Counselors for our upcoming sessions. This is a great opportunity to work one-on-one and build impactful relationships with Team Members while helping them discover and expand their career goals.”

Photo via Senior Services of Alexandria/Facebook

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20 Alexandria restaurants participating in Carpenter’s Shelter Cook-Off Pop-Up

A good cause is around the corner to satisfy your taste buds and conscience.

On August 28, Carpenter’s Shelter will host their biggest summer event — their Cook-off Pop-up at ALX Community (201 N. Union Street). The event will be held from 1 to 3 p.m. and showcases offerings from about 20 area restaurants with proceeds benefiting the nonprofit, which provides temporary housing and support for more than 600 families and individuals every year.

Advance tickets cost $20 for kids and $50 for adults, and at the door cost $25 for kids and $75 for adults.

The Jones Point Band will provide live entertainment, and the evening will include raffles and silent auctions.

Participating restaurants include:

Via Facebook

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Alexandria nonprofit Momentum Collective wants to be a charter school teaching the arts

In five years, Jason Ellis wants Momentum Collective, Inc. to be a charter school teaching kids the arts in Northern Virginia.

The nonprofit resumed programming in October, after a two-year Covid hiatus, and are one again teaching low and moderate income children how to sing, dance and act in summer camps and after school at the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority’s Ruby Tucker Center. About 90 elementary school-aged kids have participated since programming resumed, and the plan is to eventually bring back middle and high school kids.

Ellis, who founded the nonprofit six years ago, is a former program and resident and community services director with ARHA. He’s a director, actor, singer, dancer and writer.

“I’m about empowerment,” Ellis told ALXnow. “We have empowered our kids with a sense of urgency so that they can be in control of their own lives and destiny and make good choices.”

Momentum Collective, Inc. partners with Alexandria City Public Schools’ Link Club program, the city and ARHA to work with kids after school and in the summer.

“There aren’t a lot of opportunities for kids, particularly Black and brown kids in under-resourced families, who don’t have the financial resources to participate in meaningful arts enrichment programming within the city,” Ellis said. “We created the organization specifically to target kids within the city of Alexandria to have access to arts enrichment programs for free.”

Ellis was also the head of school for the YouthBuild Public Charter School in Washington, D.C. from 2018 to 2019. It’s an experience that has shifted the focus of the organization.

“We have a five year plan to start a charter school for middle school youth,” Ellis said. “For now, though, our short-term plan is to expand our programming into other recreation centers, particularly like on the West End, because that’s always a underserved area of the city.”

Momentum Collective is conducting a creative writing workshop in September at Jefferson Houston Recreation Center. The workshop is open to Alexandria children, and cash awards will be presented to the winners.

“Then we’re actually going to stage their writing productions from our winners,” Ellis said.

Ellis and his team use technology to motivate their students.

“Kids are very interested in performing,” he said. “By nature they reach they want to showcase something, which is why they’re constantly on TikTok and Instagram. So,  if I say I’m going to be working on something that you can put on TikTok, they get it — that’s the end result for them and that’s what they want to work toward. If I give them a script and tell them we’re going to put a web series on YouTube, they get excited about that, because that’s what they’re familiar with.”

Via Facebook

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Volunteer Alexandria’s Theresa Kramer-Burgess uses social media to help the city

If you’re an Alexandrian on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter, there’s a pretty good chance you’ve seen Volunteer Alexandria posts written by Theresa Kramer-Burgess.

If the Volunteer Alexandria needs something, Kramer-Burgess lets everyone know about it on social media. Sometimes she posts more than a dozen times a week on each platform.

Kramer-Burgess has been Volunteer Alexandria’s social media coordinator since 2017, and Executive Director Marion Brunken says the nonprofit would be helpless without her.

“Staff and all (Volunteer Alexandria) Board members love what Theresa does, and appreciate your time and talent she gives to us and the community,” Brunken said. “Without her, we really wouldn’t be where we are today.”

There are dozens of volunteering opportunities available in the city, and Volunteer Alexandria staff struggled with social media until Kramer-Burgess took the responsibility off their hands.

“We need to take care of each other,” Kramer-Burgess said. “I love seeing results that have an impact on people’s lives and in the community. If I can be a small part of that, that’s something that as the human I feel I need to do. We should all do something to try to improve things in the world, whether it’s picking up a piece of trash or letting people know that something is available.”

Kramer-Burgess lives in the Alexandria area of Fairfax County, and has been in marketing for 30 years. She describes herself as a behind-the-scenes type of person, and says the first few months of the pandemic were challenging. The need for volunteers increased exponentially, and she worked upward of 20 hours a week posting about availabilities.

“To see people answer the call and give of themselves and sign up for opportunities — it’s just been so amazing to see,” Kramer-Burgess said. “It’s been gratifying and restores one’s faith in people.”

Things have calmed down now, and now Kramer-Burgess gives about five hours a week to the cause. She also says she has no plan to walk away from her duties.

“It’s a part of my life now,” Kramer-Burgess said. “If they take my computer away from me, I guess I’ll have to stop, but no. I don’t have an endpoint. I never thought I’d be doing it for five years, but it fits in with my life.”

Photo via ALIVE!/Facebook

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ALIVE! opens West End Food Hub on S. Van Dorn Street

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West End residents now have a new hub to to take care of food insecurity and other basic living needs.

On Thursday morning (May 26), nonprofit and city leaders cut the ribbon for the ALIVE! West End Food Hub at 510 S. Van Dorn Street in the Van Dorn Station Shopping Center. The brick and mortar location was made possible by funding from the American Rescue Plan.

Residents will now be able to pick up free food five days a week, in addition to personal items, cleaning and school supplies, and connections to other city and federal services.

“I’m very excited about this,” Mayor Justin Wilson said at the ribbon cutting. “It’s addressing a critical need that multiplied exponentially at the beginning of COVID — our food insecurity, but it allows us to try to meet that need long into the future.”

Rolf Blank, is the vice president of the ALIVE! board, which is made up of dozens of representatives from religious congregations.

“For a long time, the board and a member of congregations have been looking for another way to be able to distribute food and interact with our community,” Blank said. “It’s really more than about food. It’s a way for people to interact with our staff.”

The Food Hub is open from noon to 6:30 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, and from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

ALIVE! has given away millions of pounds of food during the pandemic, and needs donations and volunteers.

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These Alexandrians just found a stash of baby formula and donated it to ALIVE!

Alexandria’s Homegrown Restaurant Group just stumbled across a proverbial goldmine of infant baby formula, and on Friday morning (May 20) they donated 10 cases of Similac Advance to ALIVE!.

It could take months before Alexandria grocery store shelves are stocked with infant formula, as communities around the country are struggling through the shortage.

HRG’s Bill Blackburn was inspired to find the formula after reading a Washington Post article about a restaurant owner who found a stash through his commercial food supply chain.

Blackburn made a call and found that his distributor had 10 cases of Similac Advance. It cost $1,000, which was paid for by HRG, Alexandria Celebrates Women and the Del Ray Business Association.

“Homegrown Restaurant Group is proud to partner with these organizations to provide this much-needed baby formula to ALIVE! during this crisis,” Blackburn said.

ALIVE! Executive Director Jennifer Ayers said that the nonprofit needed the formula and is grateful.

“Once again neighbors have demonstrated that if there’s a need in this community that we can work together to help other neighbors,” Ayers said.

Courtesy photo

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Goodwin House acquires West End senior living facility with plans to expand

Hermitage Northern Virginia, image courtesy Goodwin House

Alexandria-based Goodwin House Inc., a non-profit organization built around senior living, has acquired the West End senior living community Hermitage Northern Virginia with plans to undergo an expansion in the coming years.

While the current operator of Hermitage will remain in place until August 1, after that the facility will become part of Goodwin House.

Rob Liebreich, President and CEO of Goodwin House, said the acquisition of one not-for-profit of another is unusual for fortuitous because Goodwin House plans to keep staffing and pricing at Hermitage intact.

“It’s unusual for two non-profits to have this interaction,” Liebreich said. “[Hermitage] could have been bought by a developer or sold to a for-profit, but as not for profit, we can keep those residents in mind.”

There are currently around 100 residents in Hermitage, but Liebreich said the plan is to increase that to around 135.

“Going to take a good amount of work, but it’s a good product already and we think we can elevate that in the market,” Liebreich said.

Liebreich said talk about the acquisition started around three years ago. For Hermitage, it will be a chance to take advantage of the deeper well of resources available from the larger Goodwin House organization, which operates facilities in Alexandria and Bailey’s Crossroads. Meanwhile, Liebreich said the acquisition also gives Goodwin House Inc. a chance to expand its mission into middle-income residents.

“We’ll be able to serve more older adults in ways we haven’t been able to,” Liebreich said. “[Hermitage] is at a price point lower than what we currently offer and they offer a different amenity package. We’re excited to learn that model.”

Liebreich said many seniors are stuck in a “middle market” where they don’t qualify for government assistance programs but can’t afford the expenses of many senior living facilities.

Current monthly rates at The Hermitage are:

  • Assisted living rental rates range from $3,675 to $7,660
  • Long term care rental rates range from $9,900 to $13,100
  • Some residents pay additional fees for extra services.

Those rates represent an increase by the current operator, which will take effect in June, but Liebreich said there are no plans to increase the rates above that.

Liebreich said Goodwin House also plans to increase the pay structure for Hermitage staff to offer a “competitive living wage” and offer additional benefits, like an educational program.

The full press release is available below the jump:

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