I never am really satisfied that I understand anything; because, understand it well as I may, my comprehension can only be an infinitesimal fraction of all I want to understand about the many connections and relations which occur to me.”
— English mathematician Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace, born today in 1815
Loop a local nonprofit into your weekend plans …
We Are Family Senior Outreach Network (Metropolitan Comm. Church, 474 Ridge Street NW)
Volunteer in pairs or groups to visit isolated, low-income seniors in their homes. Meet up at 10:00 AM on Saturday for a brief orientation before the visits begin.
Joseph’s House (1730 Lanier Place NW)
Take a one-hour “walk-and-talk” breakfast tour of Joseph’s House, which offers compassionate end-of-life care for homeless individuals with AIDS and cancer, on Saturday at 10:30 AM.
Computer CORE (3846 King Street, Alexandria, VA)
In this 4-hour workshop on Saturday at noon, students will learn the capabilities of , plus try their hand at being a business user and building basic applications.
By Marie LeBlanc, Community Partnerships Coordinator
On Monday night, the Catalogue celebrated its 10th anniversary (or birthday, as many like to call it). Surrounded by a crowd of nearly 600 friends, family, nonprofits, supporters, and other advocates of the Catalogue initiative, we celebrated the work of the 325 nonprofits that are part of the Catalogue community.
Thank you to all who attended, volunteered, and participated. From the Catalogue Ambassadors, who mixed and mingled with the reception crowd, to the nonprofits who choreographed incredible performances for the stage, to the community supporters who offered their voices in testimonials throughout the performance, we appreciate your support of our work.
To the Catalogue guests and supporters who attended our benefit dinner following those performances, we thank you for your continued commitment to the Catalogue’s movement — and hope that you?ll continue making our dreams a reality for many years to come. We are particularly grateful for the continued support of the Harman Family Foundation and Jane Harman for going above and beyond to inspire others to become a part of our cause.
Commentary: DC Council Should Support Grandparent Caregiver Program (WAMU): “The proposal before the DC Council is a small, but important, change to the Grandparent Caregiver Program, a program that provides financial support to low-income grandparents who are raising their grandchildren,” says Judith Sandalow, the executive director of the Children’s Law Center. At present, the subsidy starts starts only after the child has lived with their grandparents for six months; the proposal would permit the city to waive that requirement and “children who are being removed from their parents and are at risk of entering foster care could immediately go to live with their grandparents.”
Ward 8 parents, teachers challenge DC school closure plan (Washington Post: Schools Insider): “A standing-room only crowd of parents, teachers and activists gathered Tuesday evening at Savoy Elementary School in Southeast Washington to critique and challenge Chancellor Kaya Henderson’s plan to close 20 under-enrolled schools.” Principal concerns included the quality of transitions for students from one school to another and the reinvestment goals for the money saved from closures. “The community meeting was the first of four scheduled over the next week;” the meeting for Wards 1-4 and 6 is coming up tomorrow.
The Risks of Limiting Charitable Deductions (Nonprofit Quarterly): “In his Urban Institute blog, The Government We Deserve, the Tax Policy Center’s Gene Steuerle looks to the past to auger the future of charitable deductions reiterates the argument that limiting charitable deductions will dampen giving, which threatens nonprofit coffers and ultimately hurts those who benefit from programs and services provided by the sector […] The Wall Street Journal reports that “there is no specific plan to eliminate deductions for charitable giving” in the ongoing haggling over the fiscal cliff. There are, however, proposals to cap overall deductions.” What do you think about a possible cap, and does the amount or the mere existence of it matter more? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.
“A name is the first and final marker of individual rights, one fixed part of the ever-changing human world. A name is the most basic characteristic of our human rights: no matter how poor or how rich, all living people have a name, and it is endowed with good wishes, the expectant blessings of kindness and virtue.
— Ai Weiwei
Thank you to all those who came to celebrate with us yesterday — and congratulations and welcome to the new Catalogue honorees!
We’re looking forward to celebrating 10 years with our awesome community of nonprofits today!
