Community Lodgings Welcomes Generation Hope

posted by admin on March 27, 2013

Even as schools offer better resources for teen mothers in the future, school systems will be limited in offering additional resources for teen parents as they face budget cuts.

On Thursday March 14th, Community Lodgings welcomed Generation Hope who presented a workshop at our Family Learning Center for pregnant and parenting teens in the community. Generation Hope is committed to supporting teen parents through college, for a workshop on college readiness.

At Community Lodgings, we educate adolescents on both abstinence and contraception to prevent pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections thanks to a Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP) grant obtained through the City of Alexandria.

In addition to teaching sex education to children in our afterschool programs, we partner with other organizations in the community to provide information to teen parents in the community.

Generation Hope’s staff presented material about the different types of colleges, college applications and financial aid, and fielded questions about the college application process. Attendees also learned about the Generation Hope scholarship program for teen parents and were encouraged to apply. Guests left with information they needed to apply to and enroll in college.

According to one guest, “It was a lot of information but it was all understandable.”

“Being part of the Generation Hope workshop was truly a blessing,” the local teen mother continued. “The workshop was very organized and well-rounded. The most memorable part of the workshop was the video Kendra played…it gave me a breath of hope, knowing that I’m not the only teen mom juggling work, college and my child.”

Employees Participate in SNAP (Food Stamp) Challenge

posted by admin on November 14, 2012

Employees to Participate in SNAP (Food Stamp) Challenge

For the week 11/26 through 11/30, Jim Dempsey and Antonio Tamariz participated in the SNAP Challenge to better understand the struggles of poor families who purchase food using Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) – more commonly known as the food stamp program. Participants live off an average of $4/day – the average food stamp benefit.

CLICK HERE to view Jim’s Grocery List and Menu

CLICK HERE to view Antonio’s Grocery List and Menu

Middle Schooler Pens Poem for Black History Month

posted by admin on May 29, 2012

In her seventh grade Social Studies class, Laura P. – an accomplished student in our middle school youth program – was tasked with creating an original poem to address the question: How do social groups organize to fight for equality? The assignment required students to compare what life was like for two groups – one with civil rights honored and the other with civil rights denied - using two distinct voices. The following is Laura P.’s poem entitled “He Should Know”. (more…)

Food Bank Boasts of Community Lodgings’ Work

posted by admin on March 8, 2012

Our good friends and partners at Capital Area Food Bank share their food with our families each week. Today they shared a story on their blog about working with Community Lodgings over the years. Thanks to Amy Hendricks, CAFB’s Kids Cafe Coordinator, for the kind words. Our programs would not be nearly succesful without our partnership with CAFB! (more…)

Volunteer Dedicates Himself to Helping Single Mother, Other Families

posted by admin on February 21, 2012

As you know, we value all volunteers who devote their time to Community Lodgings’ families. Over the past year, we have had formerly homeless families make significant strides thanks to volunteer efforts. In particular, our volunteer Besu Feleke worked tirelessly with many parents in our Transitional Housing Program to help them create a stable financial foundation. Recently, Associate Executive Director Jim Dempsey wrote to Besu’s employer BB&T to share a few words about Besu’s commitment to our organization:
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Support for Afterschool Alliance’s WaPo Op-Ed

posted by admin on March 2, 2011

On January 4th, in Washington Post’s column The Answer Sheet, Afterschool Alliance’s Executive Director Jodi Grant advocated for the consistent, steady funding of afterschool programs. Ms. Grant wrote in response to a piece by Jennifer Davis, co-founder and president of the National Center on Time & Learning, which supports expanding the instructional day. At Community Lodgings, we agree with Ms. Grant and our good friends at Afterschool Alliance that afterschool programs are a welcome break from the school day for many children throughout the country. Below, a vote of support for Ms. Grant’s column from Community Lodgings’ Associate Executive Director Jim Dempsey:
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