The following organizations are based in Northern Virginia and provide critical services to the immediate community. Many thanks to the Arlington Community Foundation (ACF) for its help in compiling this resource. An 
next to a nonprofit’s listing indicates the availability of college internships or student service-learning opportunities. For more giving options, refer to ACF’s Arlington Nonprofit Directory.
Affordable Homes & Communities (AHC)
AHC provides quality affordable housing to nearly 20,000 residents across 55 communities in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C. AHC also offers holistic resident services programs, including education and social services to help residents build more stable and successful lives.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $50 funds literacy-building afterschool activities, including audiobooks, listening devices and vocabulary puzzles.
❱❱ $250 provides emergency groceries to families struggling with new hardships.
❱❱ $1,000 supports a college field trip and educational tools for high school students.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers are the heart of AHC’s Resident Services programs, providing essential support for AHC’s K-12 education programs, special events and distributions. Volunteer opportunities are available for adults and high school students on a weekly or one-time basis.
Animal Welfare League of Arlington (AWLA)
For more than 80 years, the Animal Welfare League of Arlington has provided animal sheltering, pet adoptions, community support programs and animal control services to keep animals healthy, happy and home. AWLA’s Wildlife Resource Center is Arlington County’s first stop for injured, sick and orphaned wildlife, providing urgent care and working closely with licensed rehabilitation partners. AWLA’s community programs include a robust foster network, low-cost and free pet clinics, behavior support, lost and found reunification, and a pet pantry that provides both in-shelter sustenance and off-site pet food distribution events across Arlington.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $35 feeds a shelter pet for a week or helps stock the community pet pantry.
❱❱ $50 provides a microchip and ID tag to reunite a lost pet with its family.
❱❱ $250 supports urgent medical care for a shelter or community animal in need.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers 18 and older are needed for dog walking, cat socialization, food prep, kennel cleaning, pantry organization, adoption counseling, front desk support, laundry, fostering, and off-site pet food distribution. Spanish-speaking volunteers are especially in demand. Select roles are available to teens ages 16-18, including internships, service learning hours, and senior experience placements.
Arlington Community Foundation
Arlington Community Foundation provides the tools and expertise to help individuals, families and businesses personalize and maximize charitable giving. In 2024, ACF facilitated more than $3 million in nonprofit grants and more than $700,000 in scholarships to local students. Its bird’s-eye view of Arlington helps ACF recognize and foster unique connections between community members, resources and local nonprofits, while launching cross-sector initiatives and pilots that test strategies for expanding economic opportunity and preventing displacement. ACF also hosts gatherings such as the Arlington Women Community Builders and the LGBTQ+ Community Group.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $50 supplements afterschool activities, fuels a community scholarship, supports Potomac River access, advances Arlington arts, or helps create safe spaces for marginalized youth.
❱❱ $1,500 provides one college scholarship or a prompt-response grant (e.g., a replacement washer and dryer for a homeless shelter).
❱❱ $10,000 kickstarts a permanent scholarship fund or charitable giving fund.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers assist with fundraising, events, social media, community outreach and professional services, and serve on grant or scholarship review committees. The youth-led Arlington Youth Philanthropy Initiative (AYPI) awards grants to youth-initiated service projects and nonprofits.
Arlington Food Assistance Center (AFAC)
The Arlington Food Assistance Center feeds neighbors in need by providing dignified access to supplemental groceries. The groceries are given directly and free of charge to people living in Arlington and surrounding areas who cannot afford to purchase enough food to meet their basic needs.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $800 per month provides 100 families with a half-gallon of milk.
❱❱ $890 per month provides 100 families with a carton of eggs.
❱❱ $900 per month provides 100 families with fresh fruits.
❱❱ $1,040 per month provides 100 families with fresh vegetables.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers of all ages organize food drives. Those 12 and older may help with re-bagging bulk purchases at AFAC’s warehouse.
Arlington Free Clinic
Established in 1994, the Arlington Free Clinic is Arlington’s only provider of comprehensive healthcare services for low-income adults without health insurance. Every year, with the help of more than 450 volunteers and 45 full/part-time staff, AFC provides more than 10,000 medical visits to over 1,600 of our community’s most vulnerable residents.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $150 covers one month of specialized drugs that cannot be procured through regular suppliers.
❱❱ $250 covers dental assessments for 10 patients or supports a patient’s medical visit to AFC.
❱❱ $2,500 helps cover the cost of 10 medical visits to the clinic.
Volunteer opportunities: AFC is always looking for volunteer physicians (primary or specialty), nurse practitioners, nurses, dentists and Spanish interpreters. Registered dietitians, diabetic educators, gynecologists, optometrists, pulmonologists and rheumatologists are especially needed right now.
Arlington Neighborhood Village
Arlington Neighborhood Village provides the “extra help” Arlington County residents ages 55 and older need to continue living in their own homes and communities as they age. More than 320 volunteers provide services, social support and engagement for some 500 ANV members, 45% of whom have limited income. One-third of ANV members have mobility, eyesight or hearing challenges. Roughly 75% are female, 66% live alone, and 44% are age 80 or older.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $50 supports a criminal background and driving record check for a prospective volunteer.
❱❱ $100 helps fund Thanksgiving and holiday celebration meals that reduce loneliness and create connection during the holiday season.
❱❱ $450 provides a full range of services for a lower-income senior for one year.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers provide transportation to medical appointments, run errands, shop for groceries, pick up prescriptions, assist with technology and household tasks, and connect with seniors via telephone and in-person visits to reduce social isolation. Volunteers also help with behind-the-scenes tasks ranging from finance and IT to fundraising and strategic planning. ANV welcomes individuals 18 and over (21 for those who wish to drive). All must receive training and pass a background check.
Arlington Thrive
For more than 50 years, Arlington Thrive has provided neighbors in need with timely support to stabilize their lives and prevent homelessness. By offering rapid financial assistance to cover urgent needs such as rent, utilities, medical care and child care, Thrive helps families weather crises without losing their footing. A Community Navigator provides guidance to clients pursuing job training and certificate programs that increase earning potential. The Wee Thrive Baby Box program equips new parents with infant supplies and safe sleep resources.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $100 provides a week of basic groceries for a family of four.
❱❱ $500 helps cover a month’s rent or a security deposit for a family at risk of eviction.
❱❱ $1,000 equips five adults with the tools they need to complete job training and increase their earning potential.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers assist with the Wee Thrive Baby Box program, tabling events and other family support initiatives. Opportunities are available for students, including internships and service-learning hours for those under 18.
Arm & Arm
Arm & Arm provides peer-to-peer behavioral health services (support, training, mentoring) to individuals re-entering the community following incarceration, military service, homelessness, substance abuse recovery and/or mental health challenges.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $75 covers a peer mentoring support session for one individual.
❱❱ $550 provides Game on the Line immersion training (cognitive and somatic coping skills) for one individual.
❱❱ $750 pays for one individual to receive 72 hours of Peer Recovery Training (for state certification).
❱❱ $960 funds a focus group for four to five participants struggling with severe traumatic experiences.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers conduct outreach to raise awareness of social isolation, opioid addiction and mental health issues, and connect with at-risk youth. Arm & Arm facilitates a monthly Shop Talk forum on issues relating to community inclusion.
Aspire Afterschool Learning
Aspire expands learning opportunities to help historically underserved South Arlington students in grades 3-8 fulfill their potential through daily afterschool and summer learning programs. Committed to closing the opportunity gap, Aspire offers its programs at no cost to families.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $50 provides one day of afterschool support and a literacy kit for a student.
❱❱ $250 provides one year of books for a student.
❱❱ $600 provides one month of daily afterschool support for a student.
Volunteer opportunities: Weekly volunteers are needed between 4 and 6 p.m. to serve as one-on-one reading buddies and homework helpers for young learners, as well as during a full-day summer camp. Volunteers also help serve snack to students and organize the library. High school volunteers are welcome. For those who want to get involved but can’t commit to weekly volunteering, Aspire also hosts monthly Community Reading Nights.
Bridges to Independence
Bridges to Independence leads children and families out of poverty. Its vision is to break intergenerational cycles of poverty. In addition to operating Arlington County’s only emergency shelter for families, Bridges provides a workforce development program, rapid rehousing, youth programs, afterschool tutoring, mentoring and a summer camp. The Community Service Center provides support to individuals in need of rent assistance, job readiness training and college preparation. Current needs include donated gift cards, volunteers, tutors and mentors, as well as food and household supplies.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $250 allows one child to participate in afterschool youth development programming.
❱❱ $500 provides a laptop to a college student.
❱❱ $1,000 provides children with nourishing meals, creating lasting connections, joy and warmth during the holiday season.
Volunteer opportunities: Bridges welcomes volunteers over 18 to coordinate food drives and deliveries, organize storage spaces, serve on committees, and tutor or mentor youth. Sign up to receive the monthly volunteer newsletter to learn more about student internships and service opportunities.
BU-GATA
BU-GATA partners with other community organizations to produce, preserve and advocate for affordable housing in Arlington County. It also encourages youth civic and leadership development through its Buckingham Youth Brigade (BYB) program, which is geared toward underserved teens ages 14-18.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $50 provides snacks for weekly homework help and tutoring sessions.
❱❱ $100 provides materials for a youth skills-building workshop.
❱❱ $400 supports a college field trip and other educational trips for BYB students.
Volunteer opportunities: Virtual and in-person tutors (18 or older) are needed to assist with youth programs.
Capital Caring Health
As the region’s oldest and largest nonprofit provider of hospice and advanced illness care, Capital Caring Health is there for patients and families 24/7 at 800-869-2136.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $250 provides two companion robotic pets for a terminally ill child and their siblings.
❱❱ $500 covers two nursing visits to an uninsured hospice patient.
❱❱ $1,000 provides a day of comprehensive hospice care for a patient at one of Capital Caring’s inpatient facilities, open 24/7 for visiting family members.
Volunteer opportunities: Essential services include comfort and companionship for individuals with life-threatening illness and their loved ones, as well as art and music therapy, pet care (including dog walking) and counseling for those facing the loss of a loved one. Volunteers also sort, price and sell donated items in Capital Caring’s thrift store.
CARE, Inc.
The Community Association of Resources, Education, Enrichment & Economics, aka CARE, provides resources to families and youth in underserved communities, including afterschool and summer programs centering on activities such as sports and gardening. CARE also operates a farmers market to promote healthy living and encourages entrepreneurship and economic development.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $25 provides equipment such as cleats, gloves and balls for youth sports programs that level the playing field.
❱❱ $50 allows CARE to host a family of four for an educational dinner chat.
❱❱ $100 supplies one week of healthy snacks for as many as 25 students in an afterschool program.
Volunteer opportunities: As a volunteer-led organization, CARE relies on volunteer facilitators, mentors and program managers to plan, organize and administer its work in the community. Interns are welcome.
Center for Youth and Family Advocacy (CYFA)
CYFA invests in young people with youth-driven programs ranging from afterschool enrichment and academic support to restorative diversion that keeps students in classrooms, not courtrooms. Programs such as the Youth Advisory Board and Youth Peer Court Ambassadors help young people build leadership skills, repair harm and stay on pathways to graduation, college and careers, with a focus on healthy minds, bodies and relationships.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $100 provides school supplies and art materials for afterschool activities.
❱❱ $250 funds a youth leadership workshop on college and career readiness.
❱❱ $500 supports one youth in a restorative diversion process, a court alternative that provides accountability and a second chance.
❱❱ $1,000 funds a free teen event with food, activities and a safe space for Arlington youth to connect.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers assist with afterschool programs, special events and community outreach. Professionals may lend their expertise by facilitating youth workshops or sharing career skills. Student internships and senior experience projects are available.
The Clothesline for Arlington Kids
The Clothesline collects funding and clothing donations so that kids from low-income Arlington families can get a season’s worth of clothes free of charge. Families of K-12 students can select a full wardrobe twice a year in the nonrprofit’s welcoming store. The Clothesline’s mission is for kids to feel dignified and comfortable in the classroom so they can focus on their education. More than 1,500 children and teens rely on The Clothesline for quality clothing each year.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $60 provides socks and underwear for a family with four kids.
❱❱ $120 provides shoes to four kids.
❱❱ $200 fully funds a complete wardrobe for a child.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers sort and hang clothing donations and assist families shopping in the store. Older teens (15+) are welcome on sorting days or can organize a clothing drive.
Comunidad
Comunidad engages local leaders in programs that strengthen families, guide youth and build a vibrant multicultural community. From elementary-age reading programs to coding bootcamps, soccer clinics and adult learning, Comunidad creates pathways where growth, belonging and opportunity can flourish. Located in Seven Corners, the organization supports children and families living in the Willston and Kingsley neighborhoods of Falls Church and Arlington.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $50 provides books and materials for a child in the Strong Readers, Strong Leaders program.
❱❱ $150 supports weekly mentorship, enrichment activities, a soccer clinic, coding bootcamp or college prep for teens.
❱❱ $500 helps fund classes such as computer literacy, English language learning, and family support services that empower parents and adults.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers serve as reading coaches, soccer coaches and teen mentors, and support family programs through events and family dinners. Volunteer reading coaches must be high-school age or older. Volunteers of all ages can help at Comunidad’s monthly food distribution.
Communities in Schools NOVA
Communities in Schools of Northern Virginia empowers students to stay in school and achieve in life by addressing both academic and non-academic barriers to success. Site coordinators inside schools deliver one-on-one case management, small group support and schoolwide programming. The mission is to ensure that every student, regardless of race, ZIP code or socioeconomic background, has what they need to succeed in school and beyond.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $250 provides school supplies for 10 students.
❱❱ $1,000 funds an afterschool program
with essential supplies and healthy snacks, creating a safe, engaging space for 50 students to thrive.
❱❱ $5,000 supports life-changing internships that provide real-world experience and mentorship to high school students.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers serve as tutors and guest speakers at career events, and assist with other events and outreach.
Culpepper Garden
Culpepper Garden is a nonprofit senior living community providing high-quality affordable housing, programs and services to older adults on fixed and very low incomes. It maintains three independent senior living buildings with 346 apartments in a caring community where older adults can age in place with dignity and independence.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $250 covers one month of water and nutritious snacks for resident activities and events.
❱❱ $500 provides devices and technology assistance to help seniors stay engaged and connected in a digital world.
❱❱ $1,000 covers one month of fuel to transport residents to medical appointments and other vital services on the community’s bus.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers 16 and older provide technology assistance to residents, organize games and social activities, remove invasive plants, help maintain the community gardens and host food drives for an onsite food pantry. Culpepper Garden provides unpaid internships for college students and service-learning hours for students under 18. For more information, contact VP of Development Jasmin Witcher at 703-528-0162, ext. 104.
Doorways
Every day, thousands of adults, youth and children in Arlington suffer the impacts of domestic violence and sexual assault. Intimate partner violence is a leading cause of homelessness, especially among women and families. As Arlington’s only provider of emergency shelter, services and supportive housing for survivors and their families, Doorways is seeing a dramatic increase in those requiring emergency shelter to escape harm. The nonprofit recently doubled its shelter capacity, while offering a full spectrum response to domestic and sexual violence, from prevention programming for youth to community-based services and supportive housing.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $250 provides a play-based or art-based therapy session for a child healing from the impacts of domestic violence.
❱❱ $500 supports a family graduating from Doorways’ shelter to its HomeStart supportive housing program, funding essentials like a new bed and kitchen supplies.
❱❱ $1,400 provides one week of shelter and services to a survivor escaping domestic violence.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers 18 and older who have graduated from high school are needed to assist with shelter coverage, children’s activities, administrative support and fundraising. Individuals working directly with clients must complete at least 40 hours of training and a background check. Community groups, including youth and children, can help by organizing collection drives, fundraisers and awareness events, and by hosting educational prevention workshops led by Doorways’ staff.
Dream Project
Founded in 2011, the Dream Project empowers students from Virginia’s immigrant communities to succeed in college or vocational training through scholarships, mentoring, family engagement and holistic support throughout their education. This year, the organization awarded more than $400,000 in scholarships to 107 students.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $100 allows one Dream Scholar to attend the annual Dream Summit conference.
❱❱ $500 allows one student to participate in college coaching and support.
❱❱ $4,000 funds a Dream Scholarship for one student.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers serve as mentors, serve on committees and assist with fundraising events.
EcoAction Arlington
EcoAction Arlington educates, advocates and strives to create a sustainable community by improving the natural environment, encouraging environmentally friendly behaviors, ensuring environmental justice and addressing the climate crisis. EcoAction Arlington offers regular education programs (both virtual and in-person) and volunteer service opportunities.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $250 buys and plants one tree.
❱❱ $1,000 covers materials for energy- and water-efficiency improvements in the homes of 25 low-income families.
❱❱ $10,000 provides hands-on environmental education programs for 4,000 Arlington students.
Volunteer opportunities: EcoAction Arlington organizes public stream and park cleanup events for volunteers of all ages. Outdoor service projects can be customized for business, community and school groups. EcoAmbassadors (formerly Energy Masters) is a climate- and energy-centered training program for volunteers 16 and older. Specific focus areas include reducing energy use and electrifying the home, shifting to eco-friendly transportation choices, and minimizing waste through service projects and community engagement. High school students hold positions on the nonprofit’s board of directors and can complete senior experience internships in May/June.
Educational Theatre Company (ETC)
ETC aims to unlock the potential of youth through immersion in theater arts. Now in its 25th year, ETC provides process-driven theater education to students ages 3 to 103 in the greater D.C. region.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $90 provides a scholarship for an elementary student attend a Drama Day during a no-school day.
❱❱ $435 provides a one-week summer camp scholarship to a student between the ages of 5 and 18.
❱❱ $1,000 provides a nine-week afterschool class to 12 students at a Title 1 elementary school.
❱❱ $5,000 provides nine weeks of classes for six pre-K classrooms in a South Arlington public school.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers are needed to serve on the board, organize ETC’s storage area and provide online assistance with administrative duties. Paid internships are available for high school and college students.
Edu-Futuro
Edu-Futuro empowers disadvantaged children, youth, first-generation college students and families to succeed and fully contribute to their community. The nonprofit focuses on education, leadership development, parent engagement and workforce development to break the cycle of poverty and close the achievement gap. After the pandemic, Edu-Futuro added individual case management to support program participants who lost their jobs due to job realignments, health issues or financial crises. That support includes emergency financial assistance for rent, utilities, food and other needs.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $500 covers supplies for five middle school students attending Edu-Futuro’s annual regional robotics competition.
❱❱ $1,000 covers a stipend for a low-income high school student to hold an internship before beginning college.
❱❱ $5,000 covers the rental fees for one bus, enabling 50 disadvantaged students to tour a college campus.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers mentor high school students in a leadership development and college readiness workshop series offered three times per year. In addition, professional volunteers may serve as college and career panelists, speech/essay competition judges, and committee members for the Emerging Leaders Program (ELP). Financial literacy coaches with expertise in budgeting and personal credit are needed for the Parent Empowerment Services (PES) program.
Encore Learning
Encore Learning is dedicated to providing high-quality, lifelong learning at a reasonable cost for anyone over 50, via daytime college-level courses, clubs and special events. Courses are taught by working and retired scholars and business professionals. Classes, clubs and events are offered both in-person and virtually. The Encore Learning Presents series includes public lectures, panels and film screenings. Encore Learning and its donors support the Arthur W. Gosling Scholarship, which awards $2,500 annually to an Arlington Public Schools graduate to attend George Mason University or Marymount University.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $175 funds an annual membership and one class per semester for a limited-income student.
❱❱ $850 buys a laptop for part-time staff.
❱❱ $5,000 covers the cost of marketing for one semester, including the design, advertising, printing and mailing of fliers.
Volunteer opportunities: Encore Learning is a volunteer-led organization with administrative support provided by part-time staff. Volunteers serve as course instructors who develop and teach semester-long courses over a four- to 10-week period. Volunteers also recruit new instructors; seek speakers and performers for special events; write and edit course catalogs; initiate and maintain clubs; advise on office technology; organize social functions; and recruit, train and support class aides. Encore Learning welcomes volunteers of any age and has worked with college students on academic projects.
ENDependence Center of Northern Virginia (ECNV)
ECNV empowers people with disabilities to live independently through skills training, peer mentoring, advocacy, travel training and community education.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $35 helps cover the cost of durable medical equipment, such as a cane or tub seat, for someone in need.
❱❱ $150 supports independent living skills training on topics such as money management, personal care or how to access community resources.
❱❱ $500 funds a group social outing for young adults and adults with disabilities, reducing feelings of isolation and building community connections.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers assist with community outreach, provide support at social outings, help distribute durable medical equipment, and contribute to events or workshops. Peer mentor opportunities are available for college students interested in disability services, advocacy, and nonprofit management.
English Empowerment Center
Formerly known as the Literacy Council of Northern Virginia, the English Empowerment Center teaches adults the basic skills of reading, writing, speaking and understanding English so they can access employment and educational opportunities and more fully and equitably participate in the community. EEC is currently providing both in-person and live-streamed group instruction.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $85 provides a student scholarship.
❱❱ $100 trains two volunteer instructors.
❱❱ $500 supports five families in EEC’s Family Learning Program.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteer teachers lead classroom instruction two to three times a week per three-month semester. Class aides support learners in the classroom once or twice a week. Tutors provide supplemental instruction before or after class. Assessment specialists assess learners for appropriate program placement and measure their progress six times a year. Others help with class registration, outreach, office tasks and special projects. Unpaid internships are available to students over 18.
Food for Neighbors
Food For Neighbors tackles teen food insecurity by partnering with 53 Northern Virginia middle and high schools and mobilizing over 3,800 volunteers to support students in need. Through its Red Bag Program, donors fill a provided bag with food five times a year and leave it by their front door. Volunteers then collect, sort and distribute the food through schools to students who need extra support on weekends and school breaks. FFN also provides grocery store gift cards so that families can choose foods that meet their cultural and personal needs. This year, FFN expects to collect more than 150,000 pounds of food donations to help more than 10,000 students.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $100 provides supplemental food to 20 students so they don’t go hungry over a weekend.
❱❱ $500 provides grocery gift cards for 10 area families to purchase the food they need most.
❱❱ $1,500 builds a food pantry for a newly partnering school to store food and toiletries.
Volunteer opportunities: Community members are invited to donate food and toiletry items five times a year as part of FFN’s Red Bag Program. Volunteers ages 9 and older may help collect and sort the donations at sites in Arlington, Fairfax and Loudoun counties. Individuals and groups are welcome, and students may earn service hours. Food drives and team-building service opportunities are also available.
Homestretch
Homestretch empowers homeless families to secure permanent housing and attain the skills, knowledge and hope they need to achieve self-sufficiency. Services include intensive case management, career and job coaching, scholarship support, housing location, tenant literacy training, financial literacy education, one-on-one tutoring, and childcare services including a nursery and licensed preschool. The most pressing current needs are for Uber cards for transportation, food gift cards (Aldi, Giant, Safeway, Harris Teeter and Target), household cleaning products, toilet paper, paper towels, large kitchen trash bags and laundry detergent.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $250 buys shoes for 15 children or five gas or Uber cards for working parents.
❱❱ $500 buys a week’s worth of groceries for two families.
❱❱ $1,500 funds dental work for two or three homeless adults, or car repairs for working parents who need their cars to get to work.
❱❱ $20,000 covers one family’s housing costs for one year.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers tutor adults in subjects such as ESOL, GED prep, and computer literacy; prepare apartments for incoming families; organize donation drives; assist with property landscaping; help in the preschool or nursery; and provide pro bono expertise in their professional fields. Service projects can be adapted to fit school service commitments or learning credits.
HopeLink Behavioral Health
HopeLink, formerly PRS, Inc., provides behavioral health, crisis and suicide intervention services to adults, youth and families in Virginia. Its vision is to change and save lives by empowering hope, safety, recovery, wellness, independence and community integration. Services include the 988 hotline, textline and chat, as well as Recovery Academy day programs, employment support services, peer services and outpatient therapy.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $100 funds supplies for programs centering on music and art recovery, health and wellness, and coping skills for clients in Recovery Academy day programs.
❱❱ $250 sponsors training for one 988 hotline volunteer who can answer 450 calls per year.
❱❱ $500 provides five hours of skill-building sessions for uninsured clients who need assistance with medication management, housing and independent living skills.
Volunteer opportunities: Crisis workers provide crisis and suicide intervention services via phone, text or chat to community members contacting 988. Volunteers must be 21 or older, undergo intensive training and make a weekly commitment for a minimum of one year via remote call center. Volunteer opportunities also are offered in the Recovery Academy programs, events and administrative offices. Internships are available.
Just Neighbors
Just Neighbors supports immigrant communities in the DMV by providing high-quality immigration legal services to low-income immigrants, asylees and refugees. The nonprofit builds community through education, advocacy and volunteerism.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $75 allows an immigrant to obtain their first work permit.
❱❱ $150 reunites an unaccompanied youth with their family.
❱❱ $500 helps a refugee family apply for lawful permanent residency (green cards).
Volunteer opportunities: In-office volunteers help with client intake via phone (Spanish-speaking volunteers are needed), on-site reception, interpretation and translation services and legal casework (Tuesday-Friday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.). Immigration clinic volunteers (daytime and evenings) help clients fill out documents and prepare their immigration applications. Volunteer attorneys and law students provide face-to-face counsel for low-income immigrants and refugees. Volunteers who are not attorneys can help with translations, outreach and other support. Because of the sensitive nature of Just Neighbors’ cases, volunteers must be over 18 years old.
Kitchen of Purpose
Kitchen of Purpose provides free bilingual job training to individuals seeking careers in the food and beverage industry, as well as a small business incubator that creates jobs and small businesses in underserved communities. Through innovative food assistance programs, KOP also provides fresh, healthy meals to marginalized communities. Together, its programs form an ecosystem of support, elevating the way people eat, work and raise their families.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $50 pays for a professional quality chef’s apron for one student.
❱❱ $100 covers an entire chef’s uniform (hat, shirt, pants).
❱❱ $250 outfits a student with a full suite of culinary gear, including a uniform and knives.
❱❱ $500 funds 100 afterschool lunches.
❱❱ $1,000 covers a sponsorship for Family Meal, a program serving meals with dignity to community members in need.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers can provide small-business mentoring and professional “skill sharing,” and help with KOP’s Family Meal program.
L’Arche Greater Washington, D.C.
L’Arche Greater Washington, D.C. provides housing and support services to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Its homes in South Arlington regularly welcome new and old friends to engage in home life and community.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $8 supplements one hour of government payments for direct support professionals, allowing trained caregivers to receive a meaningful wage.
❱❱ $75 buys one day’s worth of groceries for one of L’Arche’s residential homes.
❱❱ $250 provides one week of gas and vehicle maintenance for accessible vehicles that transport residents to work, church, medical appointments and social events.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers are vital in creating a family-like spirit in L’Arche homes. Volunteer activities include cooking meals, working in the gardens, joining residents for dinner and spending one-on-one time with adults with disabilities. L’Arche also welcomes adult groups and student groups for presentations and volunteer days.
Legal Aid Justice Center
In Arlington County and across Virginia, the Legal Aid Justice Center maintains Immigrant Justice Programs focused on protecting the rights of low-income immigrants, particularly those who lack legal residency status, live in mixed-status households, or whose status may be revoked or is being threatened by changes to immigration policies. LAJC’s services include deportation defense, immigration bond representation, Know Your Rights (KYR) sessions, and emergency preparedness clinics that help families complete critical guardianship and power of attorney documents.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $100 invests in family preparedness and protection.
❱❱ $500 supports critical legal advocacy for detained individuals.
❱❱ $2,000 powers deportation defense that keeps families together.
Volunteer opportunities: Spanish-speaking volunteers are needed to answer immigration enforcement related hotline calls. Training is provided.
Meals on Wheels Arlington
Since 1974, Meals on Wheels Arlington has been providing nutritious meals and personal contact to Arlington seniors and residents with disabilities who are homebound and food insecure, so that they may continue to live independently. The community-focused organization believes that every person deserves food security and a good meal. Meals on Wheels Arlington is part of the Combined Federal Campaign. Federal employees and retirees can donate using CFC code 941214.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $270 provides a month’s worth of meals for a homebound Arlington resident.
❱❱ $1,400 covers three months of meal delivery costs for 200 clients.
❱❱ $3,200 provides meals for one full year for a homebound Arlington resident.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers interested in delivering meals (or in helping to load or unload meals from drivers’ cars) can sign up to do so on a weekly or monthly basis. Students under 18 may volunteer to load vehicles, although volunteer hours are generally on Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., which may conflict with academic schedules.
National Capital Treatment & Recovery
Founded in 1962, National Capital Treatment & Recovery delivers high-quality, evidence-based care to individuals struggling with substance use disorders and co-occurring mental health challenges. NCTR equips patients with the tools they need to achieve lasting recovery and lead independent, productive, drug-free lives. NCTR’s comprehensive continuum of care includes gender-specific residential treatment for adult men and women. Outpatient offerings feature tiered programming with counseling, education, support groups and individualized services. Family members are engaged through a weekly “Concerned Persons Conversations” group, ensuring loved ones are part of the healing journey. Financial donations to the Patient Assistance Fund or Young Adult Treatment Fund in Memory of John Buck support treatment costs for those who lack insurance or otherwise cannot afford care.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $250 purchases one weekly dinner for adolescent patients in an outpatient treatment program and their families.
❱❱ $500 contributes to the outdoor landscape renovation campaign at the nonprofit’s Demeter House Women’s Residential Treatment Program.
❱❱ $1,100 supports one day of equine therapy sessions for six patients.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers serve on NCTR’s board and committees and assist with fundraising and marketing. Internships are available for college students majoring in counseling or related fields.
Northern Virginia Family Services
Northern Virginia Family Services supports about 40,000 individuals and families each year on their journey to self-sufficiency, providing the support and resources they need to thrive.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $50 provides a portable crib for one newborn.
❱❱ $100 covers health screenings for 50 children.
❱❱ $500 provides five nights of emergency shelter for a family in need.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers are needed to assist with classroom activities in NVFS Head Start classrooms in Arlington. The Clock Tower Thrift Shop in Falls Church offers volunteer opportunities daily, including weekends (youth 12+ must be accompanied by a parent). Volunteers are also invited to organize donation drives for food, toiletries and new and gently used clothing and coats for 3-5-year-olds.
OAR of Arlington, Alexandria and Falls Church
OAR envisions a safe and thriving community where those impacted by the legal system enjoy equal civil and human rights. Through its “upstream” work, OAR is confronting and dismantling individual racism and racism in the legal system and across all systems. “Downstream” work allows OAR to be on the journey with individuals of all genders returning from incarceration and their families. OAR also offers alternative sentencing options (including community service) and diversion programs so people can avoid the trauma of incarceration and instead help their community to thrive.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $100 provides transportation for five participants recently released from incarceration.
❱❱ $500 covers up to three months of coaching for one participant.
❱❱ $5,000 provides up to a year’s worth of re-entry services (housing and transportation assistance, ID retrieval, mental health services, food, clothing, laptops, smartphones with minutes and data, family reunification) for one participant.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers are needed for various roles. Please visit oaraaf.org/oar-volunteer to see current openings.
PathForward
PathForward envisions a world where everyone enjoys stability, dignity and freedom from homelessness. The organization provides safe, permanent housing solutions, paired with life-changing support services that help individuals move from homelessness to stability and lasting independence.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $100 purchases 20 bagged meals.
❱❱ $250 purchases 25 warm blankets and wool socks.
❱❱ $750 covers three comprehensive health visits with a medical professional, mental health social worker and case management support.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers are needed to help with food preparation and cafeteria-style dinner service at the Homeless Services Center. PathForward serves three meals per day, including a nutritious hot dinner, made fresh in its commercial kitchen, which serves upwards of 80-90 people. Volunteers are a great help in making sure everyone is served a meal with a smile. Teens ages 13 and older may volunteer with a parent or guardian for select opportunities.
Phoenix Bikes
Phoenix Bikes combines youth educational programs with a full-service bike shop. Every year, 300-400 local middle and high school students benefit from free youth programming that includes learning hands-on mechanics skills, riding and racing, and building meaningful relationships with peers and mentors.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $30 provides one U-lock and helmet for an Earn-a-Bike program graduate.
❱❱ $40 provides a new floor pump for youth learning how to fix flat tires.
❱❱ $125 provides new cables (for shifting and braking) for 15 Earn-a-Bike students.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers help plan and execute community events, assist with youth rides, tinker with bikes in the shop and support youth education and community service programs.
Postpartum Support Virginia
Postpartum Support Virginia is on a mission to educate families, health care providers and communities about perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs) and to provide resources to help new and expectant mothers and their families overcome anxiety, depression and other PMADs.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $100 funds PSVa’s Warm Line for one week.
❱❱ $250 covers one month of free support group meetings.
❱❱ $1,000 provides a full-day training session for peer mentor and social support volunteers.
Volunteer opportunities: Trained volunteers lead support groups, serve as peer mentors and field calls to the PSVa Warm Line. Volunteers also assist with fundraisers, special events, community outreach, social media and administrative tasks. Internships and service hours are available.
Read Early and Daily (READ)
Read Early and Daily was created to address reading inequities faced by the community’s youngest and most economically vulnerable children. The Arlington nonprofit puts new, free, quality, culturally relevant books into the hands of babies and toddlers every month.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $50 funds one month of texting weekly reading and parenting tips to 200 families.
❱❱ $100 provides five uninsured pregnant moms-to-be with a bundle of five bilingual board books with reading tips.
❱❱ $500 funds a full year of participation in the READ With Me monthly book club for five babies in need.
Volunteer opportunities: Adult volunteers deliver books to enrolled families, assist with administrative tasks and help out at community pop-up sales and school book fairs. READ offers young people a variety of ways to volunteer, including (but not limited to) tracking inventory of new books and assisting at community pop-up sales and book fairs. READ is happy to work with families to create parent-child volunteering opportunities for young children.
Restoration Immigration Legal Aid (RILA)
RILA provides pro bono legal assistance to the D.C. area’s most vulnerable immigrants, focusing on asylum-seekers and immigrant children who have experienced significant trauma and loss. RILA compassionately represents more than 1,000 clients and serves as a trusted community leader, providing direct representation and a welcoming space.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $25 funds an emergency support line for clients in crisis for one month.
❱❱ $50 provides one month’s worth of supplies for a legal clinic.
❱❱ $100 covers an initial consultation to determine a client’s eligibility for legal status.
❱❱ $375 covers the cost of applying for Legal Permanent Residency (a green card).
❱❱ $425 covers the cost of staff hours for a Know Your Rights presentation.
Volunteer opportunities: RILA’s bimonthly legal clinics welcome volunteers who provide dinner or serve as note takers, interpreters or interviewers in client meetings. Attorneys can volunteer to help with legal briefs or representation in immigration and state courts.
Rock Recovery
Founded in 2009, Rock Recovery offers affordable outpatient therapy on a sliding scale for individuals with eating disorders. The organization provides life-saving clinical services and mental health support to those who couldn’t otherwise access the care they need to heal.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $25 sponsors a client’s free consultation with Rock Recovery.
❱❱ $50 covers one client’s intake fees.
❱❱ $100 provides one individual therapy session.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers 18 and older are needed to support Rock Recovery services and help with community events, outreach and fundraising.
True Ground Housing Partners
True Ground Housing Partners, formerly known as APAH, provides 2,957 affordable homes across 24 communities—places where individuals and families with average annual incomes of $40,000 can build stability and pursue their dreams. Housing is only the beginning. The nonprofit also provides resident-centered programs such as afterschool enrichment, job training, wellness activities and eviction prevention.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $50 allows a student to join an afterschool activity.
❱❱ $100 buys emergency groceries for a single parent.
❱❱ $500 provides rent relief for households in crisis.
❱❱ $1,000 makes the holidays brighter for a family of five.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers can assist with family engagement activities, grocery distribution, literacy support and affordable housing advocacy. Student service projects and internships are available.
VHC Health
VHC Health is an independent, not-for-profit health system. The VHC Health Foundation—the system’s 501(c)(3) philanthropy division—ensures that every patient has access to compassionate, state-of-the-art care by funding essential programs and services. This includes the VHC Health Outpatient Clinic, which provides high-quality medical care at significantly reduced costs to Arlington County residents, regardless of insurance status.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $95 helps a patient with diabetes protect their eyesight with a needed eye exam.
❱❱ $150 gives a woman access to a mammogram for early breast cancer detection.
❱❱ $200 provides a refurbished CPAP/BiPAP machine for a patient with sleep apnea.
❱❱ $400 ensures access to a diagnostic mammogram when more advanced breast screening is needed.
Volunteer opportunities: The health system’s Volunteer Services Group provides various kinds of support to patient representative services, inpatient hospital units, outpatient services and specialized services. VHC Health Auxiliary members help with wheelchair transportation and gift shops, and staff information desks.
Wesley Housing
Wesley Housing supports more than 4,700 low-income residents living in its affordable housing communities with personal development opportunities that foster self-sufficiency.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $25 covers a month of internet access for one family.
❱❱ $200 provides one month of healthy groceries for an older adult.
❱❱ $500 grants a family of four’s wish list for the holiday season.
Volunteer opportunities: Graduate students pursuing a master’s degree in social work may serve as interns to gain experience while earning college credit. Translators fluent in Spanish, Amharic, Farsi, Korean and other languages are always needed to ensure all residents have equal access to resources. Volunteers, including students under age 18, are also invited to help facilitate a Holiday Help drive (sorting, wrapping and delivering gifts), assist with youth afterschool and summer camp programs, serve as aides in adult education programs, and provide event and marketing photography.
YMCA Arlington
Each year, YMCA Arlington provides nearly 4,000 residents with wellness facilities and programming, child care, summer camps, sports (including court sports), aquatics and other family programs. The Y offers wellness programs for all ages, and scholarships and financial assistance to those in need. In 2022, the YMCA of Metropolitan Washington, which includes YMCA Arlington, provided almost $500,000 in financial assistance to area children, families and seniors.
What a donation can do:
❱❱ $1,750 covers five weeks of camp for one child.
❱❱ $2,500 provides nine months of before- and after-school care for a working parent.
❱❱ $5,000 provides one year of healthy living classes and activities for seven senior couples.
Volunteer opportunities: Volunteers are needed to assist with birthday parties, various after-school programs and community wellness programming.