By Mervyn Myers | Development Director
The United Planning Organization (UPO) was presented the Award for Excellence in Community Action at the Community Action Partnership’s 2018 National Convention. The award’s peer-reviewed standards are modeled on the principles of the Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award, which is designed to improve organizations’ competitiveness and performance. In the 15-year history of the Award for Excellence, only 12 agencies (out of a possible 1200) have achieved this standard.
When we feel our best, we can do and be our best. UPO’s Shelter Hotline team connects with homeless DC residents transporting them to shelter and providing them with comfort items and support they need. No one should be forced to live out on the street, especially during extreme weather conditions. As DC’s one and only provider of transportation services for the homeless, Shelter Hotline helps bring people without a place to live to local shelters—no matter the time of year. We also provide those in need with clothing, blankets, sleeping bags, and other items that can help them feel a bit more comfortable. Concerned community members are encouraged to look out for homeless individuals and families in their neighborhood and call to have them transported to the comfort and care of a nearby facility. Shelter Hotline services are available every day of the year in Washington DC at 800-535-7252 or 202-399-7093.
UPO’s Shelter Hotline program is funded through grant funds provided by the DC Department of Human Services. The Comfort items we provided for our homeless customers are funded by your generous donations to Help UPO Help the DC Homeless.
UPO's mission is Uniting People with Opportunities. As the designated Community Action Agency for DC, UPO serves the DC Homeless through our educational, vocational and job training programs. The Office of Early Learning provides children of homeless families with free education and family support. UPO Workforce Institute provides free training and job placement services as we help the homeless to self-sufficiency. We believe that they deserve the decency of basic comfort items that we can take for granted.
Our challenge has always been how do we make a budget pay for the comfort items needed. During the past several months we have been encouraging our donors to please consider a monthly recurring donation to provide a continuous flow of funds for all of the things we want to do for our Homeless customers? An inflow of recurring donations will help UPO set a budget for purchasing the comfort items we distribute to the Homeless and plan better for future needs. We have seen a small increase in recurring donations but we need more support!
Global Giving 100% MATCHING CAMPAIGN on new monthly donations to Help UPO Help the DC Homeless will be continuing to run until December 31, 2019. They will match your first month's gift 100% to jump start your impact. Please consider committing $5, $10, $25 or even $50 monthly in support of Help UPO Help the DC Homeless.
Receiving more monthly support will enable us to spend less time fundraising and more time focusing on the work of love we do to taking care of our customers’ needs.
See the attached Report of Comfort Items distributed to Homeless Customers by Shelter Hotline in FY 18.
Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can receive an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.
Support this important cause by creating a personalized fundraising page.
Start a Fundraiser
