Many Hands Member & Grantee Social – A Memorable Afternoon

April 2025 

On a lovely spring afternoon in late April, Many Hands hosted its first ever social gathering for members and Many Hands grantees. More than 40 Many Hands members as well as representatives from 14 grantee organizations mingled at Penn Social in downtown DC — sharing updates and thoughts about the current nonprofit climate. 

After welcome greetings from Many Hands President Charis Keitelman and Board Member Lori Sostowski, each organization’s leadership team made brief remarks about their programs and how they are addressing the challenges facing them. 

Kris Thompson, CEO of Calvary Women’s Services, summed up a common theme about the uncertainty of future government grants. “Like lots of you,” she said, “we are not sure what the future holds. About 50 percent of Calvary’s funding comes from government — from federal and local dollars — and the other half from private sources.” Kris added, “And so, my colleagues and I believe that all of you — as Many Hands and as individual donors who are committed to this community — are more important than ever to us.”

 

Jane De Angeli, College Access and Success Program Director at Community Bridges, agreed, saying everyone is in the same ocean right now, facing the same headwinds. “But I know that we’re all helping the same community, whether you might be helping the parents or the older sisters or the cousins. We’re all helping the same community, and we feel so passionate about that.”

That sense of hope and gratitude — for the work of the nonprofits and the support of Many Hands — was expressed by many grantee representatives. 

Tricia Allen, Executive Director of Together We Bake, said Many Hands funding made it possible for her organization to launch a new pilot program this summer, called Workforce Readiness and Job Fair. She said it will bring new opportunities to women through workshops as well as meetings with employers and organizations offering apprenticeships. 

Executive Director Yolanda Johnson noted that CASA Prince George’s County received its Many Hands funding just before the Covid pandemic began and it helped sustain her organization’s work serving children in foster care. She said they have just learned that an expected grant from the Department of Justice is being eliminated. “But we are moving forward,” she quickly added, “pressing forward, and continuing to be committed to provide a high level of service to our young people, no matter what. That’s my motto: No Matter What.”

A Many Hands grant enabled Access Youth Inc. to expand its program for girls in middle and high school, Senior Director of Programs Charity Jones told the gathering. Charity said the MADE program (which stands for My Attitude Determines Everything) focuses on truancy prevention, conflict resolution, and restorative justice, helping girls to achieve success in school. Charity thanked Many Hands, saying the grant allowed Access Youth to expand the program to eight schools, serving more than 250 girls each year, and also helped them secure other sources of funding.

 

Beacon House Executive Director Danielle Schmutz thanked Many Hands for “creating this space for all of us to come together.” She echoed the sentiment that nonprofits are facing lots of challenges today, adding “it’s good to be in a community with all of you to navigate those.” 

Heather O’Malley, Executive Director of SafeSpot, also ended her remarks with words of encouragement, saying she felt inspired by those gathered in what she called “an impactful room.”  “Keep up the great work,” Heather said. “Hope and healing is possible because of you.”

The grantee organizations attending the Many Hands event were: Access Youth Inc., Beacon House, Washington, DC; CASA Prince George’s County, Calvary Women’s Services, College Bound, Inc.,  Communities in Schools Nation’s Capital, Community Bridges, Friends of Guest House, Healthy Babies Project, Kitchen of Purpose, Nueva Vida, Playtime Project, Washington, DC; SafeSpot Children’s Advocacy Center of Fairfax, and Together We Bake.

Many Hands is very grateful to Penn Social for letting us host our gathering in their lovely space and for their hospitality in making the event a success. Special thanks to Many Hands member Stephanie Nealer for her reporting on this event.