January 2025 Update

HAPPY NEW YEAR

I’m not even sure where to begin. Hope is Everything saw so much growth in the past year. The number of people we were able to help throughout the year is astounding. To begin with, let’s look at the numbers:

The Numbers

$100,000

We received over $100,000 in donations, grants, and in-kind contributions. That’s remarkable! It’s a testament to you all for your participation and for being a massive part of what we are doing. It is also a testament to the Board of Directors for their incredible insights, support, and ideas. In business, as in life, who you surround yourself with makes a difference.

6

We are now active in six localities: Albemarle County, Augusta County, Charlottesville, Greene County, Lynchburg, and Nelson County. As we begin 2025, the vision to expand has not changed. But that is not the only way we are expanding! More people are volunteering with us. That’s exciting because that tells me that:

  • People are inspired by what we are doing and want to be part of something bigger than themselves. We are growing as a team, and your support has been instrumental in this growth.
  • People are hearing about us. We are also expanding our reach through social media and airwaves. We have access to radio stations here locally and in the Shenandoah Valley.

$200,000

As we grow, so will the cost to meet the needs of those we serve. We are setting a goal of $200,000 for 2025. We will accomplish this by expanding our donor base, applying for more grants, and holding special events.

250

We partnered with six social services departments to make Christmas joyful for 250 children in foster care. I’ll share more about that later in this newsletter!

The Mission

Our primary mission is to serve those affected by the judicial and social service systems. Here area few examples of those we have served in 2024:

  • We provided housing for men and women who had been released from the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail and had nowhere to sleep. We helped alleviate the stress of trying to find housing while working. We also supplied food, clothing, and personal care products. This aid made it possible for them to pursue employment and build an essential support system.
  • When someone is incarcerated, it often affects their family, too. One man in jail has four children, ages 15, 13, 10, and 2. Their mother not only faced the loss of his income and help with the children but then she was diagnosed with a condition requiring immediate surgery. We were able to lessen her stress by covering her past-due water and electric bills and two months’ rent so she could recuperate without worry. Finally, we gave Christmas gifts to her children.

These stories are just two examples of how we were able to help those who may have fallen between the cracks in the system.

Christmas 2024

This year, we were able to serve 250 foster children! Two hundred fifty foster kids received gifts on Christmas morning! This would have been impossible to pull off without many elves to shop on Santa’s behalf.

The bonus to all this is that Santa (that’s me) got to sample cookies. Let me elaborate. Every social services department that we deliver gifts to for distribution to the kids has to bake cookies for Santa (that’s me) to sample. I even took it a step further and made it into a contest. I, of course, had to sample all the cookies, but my vote would not be counted except in extreme circumstances. So, I hand-picked a panel of taste testers. This year, there were three women, ages19 to 50 years old. The contest was heated and close, but the third vote was the tie-breaker. Charlottesville was the winner. And the winner of the 2024 contest gets the “Santa’s Little Helper” award!

Christmas Testimonials

“The gifts generously donated to the families I served brought immense help and relief to those who were unable to purchase all presents themselves.” –Charlottesville DSS staff member

“I can say that the gifts,especially to older kids (12 and up) was especially appreciated as they were not covered by any other community programs and were at risk of not being able to celebrate the holiday (i.e., receive gifts) because there were no programs out there to support them.  Most community programs are for elementary and maybe early middle school.  This program, Hope is Everything, fills a very specific gap in community support to families without other resources and for older children in sibling groups who otherwise would not be able to celebrate the holiday or receive any gifts.” -Albemarle County DSS staff member

“Thank you so much for the Hope is Everything gifts. They were perfect and aimed directly at what my clients wanted/needed. My clients appreciated the quantity and quality of gifts received.” -Albemarle County DSS staff member

Upcoming Events

I will keep you updated on the particulars as we complete dates and details. Worth noting are a kayak race in May, a golf tournament in June, and a music event fundraiser in September. We will be recruiting volunteers!

Final Note

I want to thank everyone. I am so moved in such a deep and profound way. This letter only gives you a glimpse of what we can do and the lives we are able to help with great need. It is life-changing to most. As one person wrote to me, “I thank you so much. You have given me sssoooo much hope, and my family and I truly appreciate this from the bottom of our hearts. Thank you, thank you, thank you.” This is just one of many notes we received from those we have helped. Hope is Everything could not do this without you.

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