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PRESS
RELEASE
Alexandria, VA-based Friends of Guest House
Chosen for New 2007-08 Catalogue for Philanthropy: Greater Washington
Alexandria, VA-based Friends of Guest House has been selected as a
featured charity in the 2007-08 Catalogue for Philanthropy. This is the
Catalogue's fifth year in the Washington, DC region. Supported by local
foundations (Harman Family Foundation, Meyer Foundation, Morris and
Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation, J Willard and Alice S Marriott
Foundation, Marriott, Freddie Mac Foundation, John Edward Fowler
Memorial Foundation, Corina Higginson Trust) and local corporations
(CGI, Chevy Chase Trust, Fannie Mae, Landon Butler & Co.) as a
service to the community, the Catalogue profiles environmental,
cultural, educational, human services, and international organizations.
Sixty eight nonprofits were chosen this year by a review committee of
55 experienced grantmakers and members of local nonprofit
organizations. The group includes 11 nonprofits that were first
featured in the 03-04 Catalogue. Each Catalogue also relists prior
years' charitable organizations, which are live at the website, www.catalogueforphilanthropy-dc.org.
The new Catalogue goes live on
October 4th.
More than 2,000 women are incarcerated in Virginia prisons and another
2,400 in local and regional jails. Many have no safe place to live when
they are released, and most need help to achieve self-sufficiency. And
then there are the children: 70% of incarcerated women have one child
or more under the age of 18 and they need support and training to
become dependable parents. Guest House helps these women become
responsible, productive members of the community. The residential
program serves up to ten non-violent, female ex-offenders who live in a
group home setting for four months. They find employment, learn
life-skills (financial management, fitness, conflict resolution), build
support systems, repair personal relationships, and secure housing
– while working full time. An aftercare program is required
for 6 to 9 months to ensure that clients continue to receive the
support they need. A new outreach program will reach even more women
and their children. Since 1974, when Friends of Guest House was
founded, it has served over 900 non-violent, female ex-offenders.
What’s the alternative?
After an inaugural year in the District of Columbia, the Catalogue
expanded to the Greater Washington region—adding nonprofits
in Northern Virginia and nearby Maryland counties. 35,000 individuals
and hundreds of foundations will receive copies of the Catalogue in
mid-November, and 100,000 will receive Catalogue posters and an
invitation to visit the Catalogue website. To date, the Catalogue has
helped to raise nearly $4 million in pledges and gifts for local
nonprofits.
According to Barbara Harman, Executive Director of the Harman Family
Foundation, "The Catalogue is designed to be a showcase for DC region
philanthropy and an inviting way for individuals and families to
participate in charitable giving." A single check sent to the
Catalogue's DC office, or an online donation at its website,
www.catalogueforphilanthropy-dc.org, can be allocated to as many
charities as the donor pleases. Donors may also contact the charities
directly. "Because the Catalogue is fully paid for by its philanthropic
partners," Harman notes, "100% of every donation goes to the designated
nonprofits."
Friends of Guest House was selected from a competitive field of over
250 candidates. "Charities were selected for excellence, innovation,
and cost-effectiveness--and for what they can teach us about the
extraordinary ways that philanthropy works,” Harman said.
“These are certainly among the best small charities in the
Washington, DC region.
Visit
Friends
of Guest House at the Catalogue for Philanthropy
You
can now easily and securely donate to Guest House using a credit card
by simply following this link:
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