Holiday Shopping Spree & Gift Wrapping Party!

On Saturday, December 5th approximately 100 Homestretch staff, volunteers, and clients showed up at the K-Mart in Annandale, VA for our annual Holiday Shopping Spree & Gift Wrapping Party.

Every year all of our school aged children go to K-Mart and buy a $10 gift for each member of their family for the Holidays. Volunteers come out and help the children navigate throughout the store, and help the kids buy the presents. After the children buy their gifts we have a gift wrapping party at a local church.

This is one of Homestretch’s favorite events where we try and teach the children of our program the joy of giving and not just receiving. This year we had a fun filled day full of shopping, wrapping presents, arts and crafts, and games.

Congressman James Moran's Visit to Homestretch

Congressman James Moran visited the Homestretch offices on Tuesday morning, October 13th, and met with some of our homeless families, as well as staff and members of our Board of Directors. The reason for his visit was simple: we wanted to thank Congressman Moran for being such an outstanding champion of Homestretch, and of the families we serve.

Among the things for which we are thankful to Congressman Moran is a grant for $500,000 through the Department of Justice to help provide housing and services to families made homeless due to domestic violence.

In the Congressman’s remarks, he noted the following:

*That over half of the homeless families that come to Homestretch have been made homeless due to domestic violence;
*That domestic violence is the leading cause of homelessness among women with children in the United States;
*That human trafficking is also a growing cause of concern in our region and an increasing reason for homelessness among women;
*That Homestretch has helped over 850 homeless families and over 2,000 children since we were founded in 1990.

Three Homestretch mothers told about their ordeals – what happened to cause them to be homeless, and how Homestretch has helped them.

*The first, a young woman from Kenya, spoke about how she had been a victim of human trafficking. Promised a college education in the United States, she was taken instead to a brothel in Mexico where she was held captive for ten months. She escaped, made her way into the Unites States, went through more travails, and eventually came into Homestretch, where she learned English, enrolled in employment training, learned to drive, was provide with intensive therapy and legal assistance, and is not well on her way to becoming a nurse. She was happy to report that she was accepted in a County program in which she will become a first time home buyer in five years. She is graduating from Homestretch this month.

*The second woman spoke eloquently of how she finally became convinced it was time to leave her abusive husband after she found it necessary to train her four year old twins on how to call 911, in case they came to into the room and found her unconscious from another beating. She, too, is learning a trade – dental assistant – and is becoming more independent every day.

*The third woman told the Congressman about how she had managed to escape a religious cult, where she had spent almost eleven years. By the time she left, she had become emaciated and was so timid and controlled that she barely knew how to survive. She testified to how much Homestretch helped her regain her self esteem, and how she learned to become a strong, independent woman. She is also enrolled in the County program in which she will become a first time homebuyer.

Homestretch was very pleased to be honor Congressman Moran, as he has been a tireless and valiant advocate for homeless families, for survivors of domestic abuse, for victims of human trafficking, and for disadvantaged people of all kinds who seek a better life for themselves and their children. We give him great thanks!

Homestretch Wine Tasting & Silent Auction a Success!

Friends of Homestretch toasted their mission while sampling a variety of wines from around the world supplied by the Wine Cabinet of Reston, VA. The Fourth Annual Silent Auction and Wine Tasting event was held on Friday, October 2nd at the Gannett USA Today Headquarters Building in McLean, VA. A crowd of about 250 people, including Homestretch staff, Board members, sponsors, volunteers as well as many family and friends, enjoyed the fine wine, excellent food and terrific music by the Stolen Moments jazz group and their guest vocalist, Ericka Ovette, as well as the opportunity to mingle with friends and bid on the many dozens of interesting auction items. Happily, since the event was a fundraiser, more than $50,000 was raised to support the Homestretch mission of helping homeless families in Northern Virginia move from crisis to self-sufficiency. Instead of the Wine Tasting event next year, Homestretch will celebrate its twentieth anniversary with a Black Tie Masquerade Gala at the Dulles Hilton on October 30th, 2010. Save the date!

Homestretch Summer Picnic!

On Saturday, July 25, Homestretch held its annual summer picnic at Cherry Hill park in Falls Church. This is a day when all Homestretch families come together to share food, fun and fellowship. Each parent brings a dish of food from their country, so that everyone can enjoy an 'international buffet'. Over 20 countries are represented within our agency! The food was amazing, as it always is when our parents cook.

When the feasting was over, the games began. This year, we decided to include the parents in the games, and we created Homestretch Summer Olympics. We divided the participants into 6 teams of adults and children. As a team, they competed in 4 games, including the egg on a spoon relay, a shoe scramble, shelling a pea, and threading a hoola-hoop from one end to the other without letting go of hands. It was fun to see our parents out there racing and cheering for their team! Prizes were handed out to the top 3 teams.

Finally, at the end of the picnic, backpacks filled with school supplies were distributed to all school-aged children. This is definitely one of the highlights of the picnic, as our children are so excited to receive their new book bag!

The day was a lot of fun and ran very smoothly with the help of our outstanding volunteers from BB&T. It was a great way to celebrate the summer and get our kids excited for a new school year!

Those Breakthrough Moments

“When did things finally shift for you?” I asked her.

“When I saw my four year old playing with the phone,” she replied. “She likes to act grownup and talk on the phone even if nobody is on the other line. She will mimic me, what I say and even my tone of voice.”

Tears welled up in her eyes as she continued. “So my little girl, she says into the phone, I am sick and tired of living this way! It is not right for you to control my life. I do not want to live in fear every day.”

“Then I saw – then I knew – if my little four-year-old is repeating what she sees me say every day, what kind of affect is it having on her?”

She buried her head in her hands, sobbing: guilt was pouring over her. We assured her that what had happened was not her fault and coming for help was the best thing she could do. Leaving her abuser could be the beginning of a brand new life.

I am fascinated by the things that bring sudden insight – the “breakthrough moments” that are the spark in someone’s decision to profoundly change their life. Sometimes these moments might seem, to a casual observer, to be completely innocuous, but to the person for whom it happens, it may be life changing.

I recall a conversation I had with a man who once worked for me. He was in his mid-forties, in recovery from substance abuse. He had left behind a lifetime of minor crimes to become a respected counselor in my drug treatment program. I asked him about his breakthrough moment.

“It was the day I went into a bagel shop and asked for a donut”, he said. “I didn’t know the difference between a bagel and a donut, and when the lady behind the counter corrected me, and when I saw the laughter on the faces of everyone in the shop, I realized for the first time that I really didn’t know anything.”

He paused to reflect back on that moment.

“It swept over me like a lightning bolt. All those years, I was a know-it-all, I was smarter than everybody else; I had all the answers I needed to get by. And in that moment, I saw the truth: that I was forty years old with nothing to show for myself. I couldn’t even tell the difference between a bagel and a donut. I decided then and there that I needed to humble myself and accept the possibility that maybe the people trying to help me knew a lot more than I did about how to live a successful life.”

Raum Emmanuel has said, “One should never waste a good crisis”. That is our business at Homestretch – turning crisis into opportunity, helping people fundamentally change their lives for the better. Thank God for those breakthrough moments.

Bike Doctor Donates Bikes to Homestretch

In the summer of 2008, Homestretch came into contact with Charles Jones, whom we affectionately refer to as the “Bike Doctor.” This gentleman, with the help of some of his friends, has created a business called “Bikes for Tikes and Teens.” Using the shed in his backyard, he collects used bikes, fixes them up, and donates them to children in need – easily earning his title as “Bike Doctor.”

Last summer, he agreed to partner with Homestretch and provide a batch of bicycles to our children. To date, Homestretch has been the recipient of over 70 bicycles! On the day of delivery, many kids are riding around the parking lot just as soon as the tires hit the ground. One teenage boy who lives nearby actually walked to Homestretch to pick up his bike because he couldn’t wait for it to be delivered. We have been so grateful and so blessed by Charles’ generosity and look forward to continuing this partnership.

Homestretch Benefit Breakfast – a Huge Success!

On Tuesday, May 5th, Homestretch hosted our fifth annual benefit breakfast at the Gannett USA Today Building in Mclean, VA. It was wonderful to see nearly two hundred friends of Homestretch assembled to participate in “Celebrating What Works, Building on Success to Transform Lives” (our breakfast theme) at 7:30 in the morning!

After introductory remarks from Tim McGough, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Homestretch, and Christopher Fay, Executive Director, the breakfast featured talks from three clients. Each spoke eloquently about their experiences at Homestretch and touched many hearts with their humor, honesty and profound sense of gratitude for the help they have received.

The first, Sandra, told how her husband turned to drugs and alcohol and its impact on her family. He lost all their money, sold their house without telling her, and when she asked him about it, he became physically abusive. She finally left him, taking the children with her to a homeless shelter; and from there came to us. She has now paid down all the debt that was in her own name, found a better job at a higher wage, and has seen her children prosper in school. At one point during her remarks she said proudly, “I am a soccer mom!”

The second, Larry, told what it was like to have decided with his family to stay in New Orleans to sit out Hurricane Katrina. When they realized too late how bad that decision was, he said he felt incredible guilt, sensing that his family would die and it would be his fault. They survived, although they lost everything, and FEMA relocated them to Virginia, where they were put in a shelter. From there they came to us. Within two years, they paid down all their debts, found good jobs, graduated, and have just purchased a beautiful home. Larry is a pastor and has found a parish to serve where he and his family are very happy. Larry says he now regularly preaches about things that he learned from Homestretch.

The third speaker, another woman named Sandra, spoke of having to flee a cult where she had found herself virtually a captive, where the environment was so controlled that she could not even decide what she could eat. Leaving was the hardest thing she ever did, and the process of rebuilding her confidence took two years. She is now working at a great job, her daughter is prospering in school, and she is getting married to a wonderful man in June. “Homestretch saved my life”, she said. “And now”, she went on, “I am proud to be not just a graduate, but a donor to Homestretch too!”

A fourth scheduled client speaker was to be Titi, a young 18 year old girl from Somalia whose family fled their country after being threatened by death squads. Unfortunately, Titi’s talk had to be re-scheduled. Titi’s story was about how her family found their way while in Homestretch, learning the language and culture, finding work and building skills, and helping each other: since children learn the English language quicker than their parents, how important it is to do what they can to make a success of their new life in America. Titi also just learned that she was being awarded a scholarship by the American Association of University Women to attend the college of her choice.

From a homeless shelter to a college campus – in a mere two years! That is what Homestretch is all about and one of many reasons to “Celebrate What Works.”

By any measure the breakfast was a great success. More than $100,000 was raised through this event to help homeless families in Northern Virginia move from crisis to self-sufficiency.

The breakfast is one of two major fund-raising events Homestretch has held each year for the past several years. The other is a Wine Tasting and Silent Auction, which will be held this year on Friday, October 2nd, also at the Gannett USA Today Building in
McLean, VA. (For more information on the October event, please visit the Homestretch website at http://www.homestretch-inc.org/.)

College Students Volunteer At Homestretch Over Spring Break!

On March 5th and 6th a group of college students from Campus Ministry, a Christian club from Grand Valley State University in Michigan took time off of their Spring Break trip to come volunteer at Homestretch!

Accompanied by our Relocation Coordinators, the group went to two of our units and helped clean and paint to make the homes look nicer for the new clients moving in.

Homestretch is so thankful for volunteers like the ones from Campus Ministry. If everyone in the world could be more service minded like these college students our world would be a better place.

Thanks Campus Ministry!

Homestretch Volunteer of the Month: Excella

Excella is a business and technology consulting firm serving government and commercial clients in the Washington, DC, area. We help organizations define and execute technology strategies to produce real business results!

Excella has adopted Homestretch as their charity of choice. They have donated a lot of time and money to Homestretch. Recently Excella came to our facilities and renovated, cleaned, painted, three of our units, and had another team of Excella employees helping Homestretch move from one space to another. They washed bathrooms, changed light bulbs, organized, bought Homestretch shelving for storage, and cleaned. Also for the Holidays they had a Homestretch child’s drawing as the cover to their Excella Holiday card. Homestretch is very excited for this partnership, and is very thankful for the amazing volunteers of Excella!
To learn more about Excella visit www.excella.com

Donating Money, Just by Using the Internet!

What if Homestretch earned a penny every time you searched the Internet? Or how about if a percentage of every purchase you made online went to support our cause? Well, now it can!
GoodSearch.com is a new Yahoo-powered search engine that donates half its advertising revenue, about a penny per search, to the charities its users designate. Use it just as you would any search engine, get quality search results from Yahoo, and watch the donations add up!

GoodShop.com is a new online shopping mall which donates up to 37 percent of each purchase to your favorite cause! Hundreds of great stores including Amazon, Target, Gap, Best Buy, ebay, Macy's and Barnes & Noble have teamed up with GoodShop and every time you place an order, you’ll be supporting your favorite cause.

Just go to www.goodsearch.com and be sure to enter Homestretch as the charity you want to support. And, be sure to spread the word!!!!!