We Are Family Senior Outreach Network

We Are Family Senior Outreach Network was born in 2004 with $15,000 donated by the multi-platinum punk band Good Charlotte and its ally, Positive Force DC, to a small knot of senior leaders and their friends at inner-city Catholic parish, St. Aloysius. This unique intersection of young and old, urban and suburban, black, white and brown, faith-based and secular, came together to address a worrisome gap in senior services amidst a community crisis in the North Capitol/Shaw community, a low-income area five blocks north of the U.S. Capitol. In 2007, we added a second, similarly challenged service area in the nearby Columbia Heights/Petworth neighborhood. We Are Family mobilizes volunteers to bring free services, advocacy, and friendship directly into seniors' homes in these areas. We have gone from helping about 50 seniors in 2004 to serving more than 1100 in 2022. Last year, We Are Family successfully reimagined and expanded our services in the face of the pandemic and: * delivered 12,732 grocery bags of pantry staples, * monthly produce deliveries to nearly 1100 seniors throughout the year, * delivered 803 personalized birthday cards, * provided 1039 Thanksgiving $50 gift cards, * delivered 1087 holiday gift bags, and * saved 1 senior from eviction. All of this was done with three full-time and one half-time staff and a volunteer roster of almost 6,000, over 150 of which are regular helpers. More broadly, we aim to build lasting friendships across boundaries like race, class, age, religion, and sexual orientation. Grounded in grassroots senior leadership, and driven by our diverse corps of volunteers, We Are Family walks beside our seniors to face whatever challenges life may bring. Together, we build a network of caring eyes and ears - a community that honors its elders, where neighbors look out for each other, where no one is forgotten, and where everybody matters. We Are Family is not simply a social service agency; it is a bold experiment in building caring, just, and inclusive community. Your tax-deductible donation or volunteer time can make a big difference in the life of a senior! JOIN US IN STANDING WITH OUR SENIORS!