A program that targets barriers to stability for female-headed households, female adolescents, and women aged 18-23 in the region, will receive a $50,000 grant from The Community Foundation’s Women and Girls Fund. The grant was awarded at the Women and Girls Fund’s annual Live Ballot event, where the hundreds of women who have joined the fund to date are invited to hear directly from the groups applying for funding and then vote to award the grant.
This year’s Live Ballot took place May 14 at the Mary Washington Monument—the first U.S. monument ever erected by women for a woman—in Fredericksburg courtesy of Washington Heritage Museums. Fund members came together to learn about the programs of four organizations and voted to award this year’s grant to Loisann’s Hope House, for its HOPE (Housing, Opportunity, Prevention, Equity) Diversion Program.
The HOPE Diversion Program provides supportive services to ensure access to stable housing, quality childcare, reliable transportation, and successful education outcomes. These areas address key barriers to the success of women and girls to ensure equitable opportunity, development, and advancement of the population. The HOPE Diversion program is unique to the region and was developed with adaptability in mind to address service gaps on the path to stability. Through targeted support and empowerment, it paves the way for transformative change, offering hope for a brighter future.
Loisann’s Hope House Executive Director Cait Woodward said, “The support from The Community Foundation and Women and Girls Fund members of the HOPE program marks a significant milestone for our agency. It enables us to address critical needs such as childcare, transportation, and education for women and young girls experiencing homelessness, empowering us to fulfill our mission of breaking the cycle of homelessness.”
The Women and Girls Fund has a vision of growing a fund made up of 1,000 women, each giving a one-time contribution of $1,000, to create a $1 million endowment to fund programs like these for years to come. Women from Caroline, Fredericksburg City, King George, Spotsylvania and Stafford can join at any time and make payments on a one-time, quarterly or yearly basis.
