The Future Fund of Northern Virginia

By Ed Prugh, NEVIN Communications

Photo by Lee Love

One of the biggest challenges facing young professionals today is to identify where their talents and resources can make the most impact in the community. There are many non-profit organizations with needs throughout Northern Virginia. The Future Fund, a new Giving Circle at the Community Foundation for Northern Virginia helps young professionals in their 20’s, 30’s and early 40’s connect and make a difference to a cause that is important to them. Many of them are in the process of building their lives from post-college to pre-family, so donating to charities may not be at the forefront of their priority list.

Today’s young professionals in The Future Fund are socially conscious and passionate about ways they can give back to the community where they live, work and play—and they value doing so collectively. “The Future Fund is the perfect match in my life. I want to be informed and learn about the needs in my community and give what I’m able to give whether it’s time or money to them.” said Lucy Hutchinson, member of The Future Fund leadership committee and a senior associate with a large recruiting firm.

The Future Fund mission is to help those with the most critical needs in the community. Giving on a level that is affordable and then combining the member contributions is a perfect way to increase the social and financial impact in the community. This generation of young professionals comes together on both a personal and professional level to better understand what the critical needs are in Northern Virginia and identify some ways to change the lives and future of the people who need help. The Future Fund not only teaches a new generation about philanthropic causes and ways they can make a difference, it also includes social events for young professionals to network and combine their like interests to focus on a critical need or issue that affects the Northern Virginia community.

Recently, The Future Fund held its inaugural Black and White Gala hosted by The Community Foundation for Northern Virginia. The evening was a brilliant success with more than 350 business, philanthropic, and community leaders gathering to participate and support the growing Future Fund giving circle. “I believe engaging and educating the next generation of leaders in Northern Virginia will be a huge part of defining the future of philanthropy. Finding ways to get people excited about giving back to causes that address the acute needs in the community is so important to young professionals.” said Eileen Ellsworth, President of the Community Foundation for Northern Virginia.

In addition to The Future Fund, the Community Foundation for Northern Virginia makes grants that help meet the most critical need of the region. The Community Foundation develops assets for grant making from the community, for the community. There are five major Community Investment Funds developed and designed to help our most vulnerable neighbors and residents, including the following:

The Child and Youth Development Fund helps children and youth obtain the support and opportunities they need to thrive. Grants from the Fund support high quality enrichment and social support programs for children, youth, and their families. The funding promotes family and community connections and discourages substance abuse, risky behaviors, and domestic violence. Some organizations who have recently received grants from the Child and Youth Development Fund include Community Lodgings, Escuela Bolivia, Fairfax Court Appointed Special Advocates, Greenbrier Learning Center, Prospera Initiatives, and SCAN of Northern Virginia.

The Poverty Relief Fund helps relieve the suffering caused by poverty in Northern Virginia. Grants from the fund support basic needs assistance services to our most vulnerable neighbors. While Northern Virginia is the economic engine of the Commonwealth, pockets of poverty persist here and the economic downturn has pushed many more people to their financial limit. Grants from the Fund have recently benefited such organizations as Arlington Food Assistance Center, Alternative House, Assistance League of Northern Virginia, FACETS, Northern Virginia Family Services, Transitional Housing BARN, and many other important organizations.

The Health, Mental Health and Aging Fund supports programs that help nurture the health of all members of the Northern Virginia region. Access to health care, mental health care, dental care, and pharmaceuticals, especially for families living below 200% of the federal poverty level in our region, is critical. Grants from the Fund primarily support programs that increase access to these health related services. Some recent grants from the Fund were awarded to Inova Kellar Center, Rx Partnership, Arlington Pediatric Center, Shepherd’s Center of Oakton-Vienna, CrisisLink and others.

The Education Fund helps increase the number of children and adults who are prepared to enter a competitive workforce in the 21st century. As our workforce continues to age and Northern Virginia becomes a larger economic engine in Virginia, programs to help children succeed in school and adult literacy are more critical than ever. Awards from the Education Fund have recently gone to College Access Fairfax, Literacy Council of Northern Virginia, BEACON for Adult Literacy, Main Street Child Development Center, and Loudoun Literacy Council.

The Military Personnel and Their Families Fund supports the rapidly growing needs of military personnel and their families in the Northern Virginia community. Grants from the Fund support the many needs of military families, help create job opportunities for returning veterans and their spouses, and help address the general health and welfare of recovering soldiers. Grants from the Military Personnel and Their Families Fund include Fischer House and Yellow Ribbon Fund.

The Community Foundation for Northern Virginia is a 501 © (3) organization and contributions are tax deductible. If you are interested in joining The Future Fund or supporting one of the Community Investment Funds mentioned in this article, contact Sara Jaffe at 703-337-0127 or Jaffe_sara@ne.bah.com or visit
link.

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About Ed Prugh, NEVIN Communications

Ed is President and Chief Strategy Officer at NEVIN COMMUNICATIONS, a full-service Public Relations, Brand Strategy, Advertising, Public Affairs and Business Development firm located in McLean, VA. Ed leads the agency's business development efforts and directs the customized marketing programs for clients. He has over 16-years of national and international advertising agency experience working with clients in the healthcare, home building, telecommunication, investment and retail banking, technology, wireless and non-profit industries.

He has strong advertising media sales experience selling programs online, on-air and in-print with major market television stations and newspapers. Ed founded Nevin Communications, a public relations, advertising, brand strategy and business development firm, after account management leadership positions with advertising agencies such as Interpublic Group's Draftfcb in New York and Mullen in Boston as well as Doner. He has a Bachelor of Science in Journalism with an emphasis in Advertising from the Perley Isaac Reed School of Journalism at West Virginia University.

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