Read. Think. Act.

Catherine Read

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Non-Profit Advocacy: Impacting Public Policy – Inside Scoop

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Jan. 23, 2017) Catherine read speaks with three Northern Virginia non-profit leaders about the importance of advocacy work to the mission of non-profits focused on human services. In the first segment she is joined by Mary Agee, the former President & CEO of Northern Virginia Family Service (NVFS) which grew substantially in the 40 years she was there. Mary discusses the importance of advocacy and speaks to a widely held misconception that 501(c)3 organizations are prohibited from this activity because it is “lobbying.” Advocacy at its core is an educational activity designed to inform policy makers from town councils to Capitol Hill. Without the work of non-profits who are on the front lines, there is often little awareness of complex issues that require regulation or resources from the government.

Virginia Housing AllianceIn the second segment, Lisa Whetzel, Executive Director of Britepaths (formerly Our Daily Bread, Inc. – Fairfax) talks about advocacy as one of six identified pillars of change in the book Forces for Good. Britepaths only recently adopted an “advocacy policy” and the journey of their board of directors to address advocacy after 30 years of direct service delivery is instructive. Lisa explains that in the face of disappearing housing where our clients live in Fairfax City, she felt that Britepaths must take a stand in advocating for affordable housing. In focusing on which issues are support the core mission of the organization, Britepaths is able to join forces with other groups such as VOICE and the Virginia Housing Alliance to make a real impact on policy makers from Fairfax City to Richmond Virginia.

In the third segment, Kerrie Wilson, CEO of Cornerstones (formerly Reston Interfaith) talks about coming from a position where she worked in government relations for a national organization to taking the helm of a regionally based non-profit in 2001. Kerri talks about the efforts to build coalitions around issues like affordable housing which impact low income working families here in Northern Virginia and how their organization has evolved over their four decades of serving the Reston area.

Mary Agee Inside ScoopThe final segment with Mary Agee addresses the importance of cultivating relationships over the long term with elected leaders. She also discusses the importance of having human services organizations include advocacy as a major pillar of their efforts and how boards need to take a leadership role in shaping an advocacy policy. There is also discussion about how to find people in our communities who have the skills, the time and the motivation to help solve some of the many problems people in our community face. How does need connect with resources and what can we do to be more efficient in finding volunteers, supporters and advocates?

This show aired as the 2017 Legislative Session in the Commonwealth of Virginia was just underway. For 45 days, Richmond, Virginia, is the destination for people from around the state doing advocacy work around specific issues related to human services. This process is repeated every year where thousands of proposed bills are introduced and the majority of them don’t ever make it to the Governor’s desk. Going forward, it is imperative for non-profits to focus energy and resources on moving the needle forward on policies that improve the quality of life for Virginians in every community.

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Britepaths (formerly Our Daily Bread – Fairfax)

(Aug. 8, 2016) Catherine Read welcomes Lisa Whetzel, Executive Director of Britepaths, to discuss the organization’s re-branding. On July 21st, the non-profit known as Our Daily Bread, Inc. – Fairfax for 32 years, announced the organization’s new name. The discussion around rebranding has taken place over the course of the last five years as it became obvious that the name was no longer an adequate descriptor for the many services and programs offered by the organization.

Thirty-two years ago, a group of faith communities came together to provide food to low income residents of Fairfax, VA, who struggled with food insecurity. For many years, providing food was the core mission of Our Daily Bread (ODB). When Lisa Whetzel joined ODB in 2005 as a volunteer, she started a financial literacy program. The goal of this program was to help families with basic budgeting and to teach them better financial skills.

As Lisa stepped into the role of Executive Director and Marcelle Miles was hired to oversee the Financial Literacy Program, it became increasingly more important as a core service with outreach now taking place through numerous other non-profits in the Northern Virginia area. Christina Garris who oversaw the food program was tasked with launching Project Bridge and identifying candidates who would benefit from one-on-one mentoring tailored to their specific challenges.

In the final segment of the show, Development Manager Jennifer Rose goes over other programs that have evolved or been added over the years: The Back to School program that provides backpacks and school supplies to area children; The Holiday program that serves Fairfax County families whose children receive free lunches to provide them with Thanksgiving and Christmas meals and gifts; The Food for Thought program that sends food home on the weekends to school children who qualify for food assistance; and the Naomi Project which mentors at-risk mothers through their pregnancies and the first months of parenthood.

Given the growth and expansion of services over the past three decades, it made sense to change the name of the organization and rebrand with something that is more inclusive of the many unique “paths” that clients take in order to reach a place of stability and self sufficiency.

More information on programs, services and upcoming events can be found at http://Britepaths.org

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The Fight for Affordable Housing in Fairfax

Catherine Read discusses Affordable Housing with Lisa Whetzel, the Executive Director of the non-profit Our Daily Bread, and with Ken McMillon of the Copmmunity Action Advisory Board. With numerous redevelopment projects in Fairfax City being presented for City Council approval, the issue of those displaced must be addressed.