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!