Dear Business Leader,
Doing well by doing good. That is one of the many benefits of business/corporate giving. By supporting the needs of our community you show that you care about it, and you show both your employees and your clients that giving back is an important part of your company’s ethic.
It is hard to fathom that right here in Fairfax County, one of the wealthiest counties in America, there are more than 1200 homeless people, primarily families and the working homeless. They live in cars, in shelters, and outdoors. One-third of these homeless are children.
The majority of our homeless are what we term the working poor. They hold multiple jobs, at minimum wage, and find themselves homeless when a car breaks down, a job is lost, or they are laid low by illness. They are the people who clean your buildings at night, deliver your pizza, and the salespeople who wait on you at the Mall.
It takes an estimated $81,000 in earnings for a family of one working adult and three children to live in Fairfax County, according to the county’s cost of living chart. That would require an hourly wage of $30 an hour for a 40 hour week. Most of the working homeless earn minimum wage at $7.25 an hour in Virginia.
Family PASS doesn’t provide hand-outs. Our program is voluntary and our clients pay their fair share. We find them affordable housing which they contribute to, based on county housing/earnings calculations. We work with them to help them make informed choices for their future by focusing on their education and skills needs so they can eventually earn a living wage. We provide counseling and case management to families for up to three years or until we are sure they can remain in housing and be economically self-sufficient.
Our program works. Not only does it have a 95% success rate but the children of our clients have come back to volunteer their time to help others. One, now a dentist, provides dental check-ups.
Please contact me to talk about how your company can become part of our clients’ future.
Sincerely,
Pat Kearns
Pat Kearns
Executive Director