Last week, volunteers and staff from ALIVE! joined the team at Arlington Friends of Urban Agriculture to pick fresh vegetables for upcoming ALIVE! food distributions.

These donated potatoes, squash, and cucumbers are going to make a great addition to the chicken, eggs, bread that ALIVE! volunteers distribute to our neighbors in need.

If you’d like to join us for one of our upcoming volunteer actions be sure to sign up at: https://www.alive-inc.org/we-need-volunteers-alexandria-va/

If your congregation has a preschool, daycare, or other childcare services we invite you to share this information so that they may attend the Open House from August 8th-10th.

After the closure of ALIVE!’s Child Development Center, the ALIVE! Board has decided to hold a series of open houses for childcare providers to come and collect items from our storage. We have not made a final determination about how we can best contribute to the well-being of low income preschoolers, but we have decided that ALIVE! should not continue storing preschool furnishings and materials when they could be put to use by programs and providers which are currently offering early care and education to Alexandria preschoolers.

Please help us put our items to good use! We have a wide variety of furnishings and materials ranging from large items like portable sinks, cubbies, bookcases, sand and water tables, student desks, storage units, and cots to smaller items like art and craft supplies, teaching materials, books, toys, puzzles and other manipulatives.

Anyone who is interested should contact Shaklia Moore at office2@alive-inc.org.

ALIVE! Programs and Office Closures

We are looking to restart ALIVE!’s Furniture Program in September! Please let us know if you can provide overflow storage space for donated furniture or, if your congregation may have space storage shed on your property.

Please note that the ALIVE! offices and programs will be closed from August 22nd through August 26th for a staff retreat.

Save-the-Date for StepALIVE! on October 16
The 41st annual StepALIVE! Walkathon will be held on Sunday, October 16th to benefit all ALIVE! programs. Join us for the 2pm kickoff and post-walk celebration at First Christian Church. Sponsorship opportunities are available and details on how to register your team are coming soon!

The Alexandria City Council is seeking applicants to fill the vacancies on key volunteer boards and commissions including:

Economic Opportunities Commission
Social Services Advisory Board
Community Services Board
Local Emergency Planning Committee
Children, Youth, and Families Collaborative Commission
Alexandria Housing Affordability Advisory Committee

Applications due no later than 5pm on September 2. To learn more and to apply visit: https://www.alexandriava.gov/boards-and-commissions/boards-and-commissions-vacancies

ALIVE!’s Food Distribution Schedule

ALIVE! strives to provide nutritious foods through direct distribution to our clients and by supporting Alexandria’s food pantries, meal kitchens, public schools, recreation centers, and other community partners.

ALIVE! Food Distribution Calendar – August 2022

ALIVE! Food Distribution Calendar – September 2022

 

Weekend Food Distribution:
ALIVE! distributes bags of food (groceries, produce, chicken, eggs, bread) at 3 sites one Saturday per month in the parking lot at each site. ALIVE! food distributions are for City of Alexandria residents. No ID required.

Reusable Bags:
Please encourage referrals or clients to bring reusable bags to food distribution events so that ALIVE! can recycle them for future events. All reusable bags are accepted.

Saturday, August 27 from 8:30am – 10:30am
Drive-through:

  • Cora Kelly Elementary School (3600 Commonwealth Ave)
  • NVCC Alexandria Campus (parking lot B-1 via 500 Dawes Ave)

Walk-up:

  • Cora Kelly Elementary School (3600 Commonwealth Ave)
  • William Ramsay Rec Center (5650 Sanger Ave)

Pop-Up Food Distributions:

ALIVE! provides bags of food to specific neighborhoods and apartment buildings, in collaboration with our community partners, in the parking lot at each pop-up location. Drive-through and walk-up service available depending on site.

Thursday, August 11 from 4:30pm – 6:00pm
Ramsay Rec Center (5650 Sanger Ave)

Friday, August 12 from 4:30pm – 6:00pm
Casa Chirilagua (4109 Mt. Vernon Ave)

Friday, August 19 from 10:30am – Noon
Old Town Community Church (212 S. Washington St)

Saturday, August 20 from 8:00am – 10:00am
Fairlington United Methodist Church (3900 King St)

Saturday, August 20 from 10:00am – Noon
UNCUT Youth (1501 Cameron St)

ALIVE! Food Hub (510-F South Van Dorn Street)
The ALIVE! Food Hub offers Alexandria residents food, personal items, cleaning supplies, school supplies and connections to information other services.

Hours of operation:
Tuesdays Noon – 6:30pm
Wednesdays Noon – 6:30pm
Thursdays Noon – 6:30pm
Fridays 10:00am – 1:00pm
Saturdays 10:00am – 1:00pm
Have questions about rental assistance or eviction prevention in Alexandria? Meet with staff in-person for immediate assistance at the events listed below. Please bring your lease, ledgers, and any documents (SNAP or SSI approvals).
Tuesday, August 9th from 10am – Noon
William Ramsay Rec Center (5650 Sanger Avenue)
Wednesday, August 10th from 10am – Noon
Presidential Greens (3904 Executive Ave)
Presidential Greens residents only
Monday, August 15th from 2pm – 5pm
at Mark Center Pavilion (5708 Merton Court)
Morgan Properties residents only
Tuesday, August 30th from 10am – Noon
William Ramsay Rec Center (5650 Sanger Avenue)
Every Thursday from 10am – Noon
at Casa Chirilagua (4109 Mt Vernon Avenue)
Every Thursday from 2pm – 5pm
at the ALIVE! Food Hub (510-F South Van Dorn Street)
Questions? Visit ALIVE!’s Alexandria Eviction Prevention Program for more information: https://www.alive-inc.org/aepp/

As you’ve probably already seen, ALIVE! has been selected by the Giant Food Community Bag Program!

For the month of August, whenever a $2.50 reusable Community Bag is purchased at the Giant Food located at 3131 Duke Street, we will receive $1. This program has raised $442 for ALIVE! in the past as we are so grateful to everyone who participates.