If You Want to Support Education
1. LearnServe International
The organization empowers area middle- and high-school students to create social programs that benefit their communities and beyond, and offers an opportunity to compete for funding through the LearnServe Incubator.
$100 will buy: A seed grant for a student-led social venture.
2. Words Beats & Life
Hip-hop is the soundtrack of choice for this nonprofit, through which students learn DJing, beat production, spoken-word poetry, and more. The group also educates kids on career options in the creative industry.
$500 will buy: A DJ controller, headphones, and speakers.
3. The Latino Student Fund
This nonprofit is working to increase the number of Hispanic college students, providing scholars with tutoring and SAT prep. Parents get involved, too, with the opportunity to enroll in ESL and computer classes.
$1,000 will buy: A week of summer college prep and college tours around the region.
4. Open Door Sports
Kids with disabilities can participate in this organization’s weekly adapted-sports classes at no cost. Each child is paired with a middle- or high-school student for one-on-one guidance through the athletic drills.
$1,000 will buy: Enrollment for ten kids in the seven-week adapted-soccer program.
If You Want to Support the Environment
5. Montgomery Countryside Alliance
The nonprofit connects local farmers with landowners around the region to promote agriculture. Conservation work is aimed at protecting farmland in Montgomery County’s Agricultural Reserve.
$100 will buy: Two seminars on regenerative agriculture.
6. Anacostia Watershed Society
On a mission to clean the Anacostia River and the surrounding area, this group hosts volunteers for restoration projects such as Earth Day cleanups and planting native species. It also teaches people how to be environmental stewards.
$100 will buy: Supplies to remove 7,500 pounds of trash.
7. ECO City Farms
This Prince George’s County nonprofit teaches people about urban farming, with a focus on chemical-free, restorative practices, including a comprehensive composting program using food waste and coffee grinds from nearby businesses.
$500 will buy: Tuition for one farmer’s certification course.
8. Chesapeake Natives
The Maryland group grows and sows plants native to the Chesapeake Bay to promote biodiversity in the watershed. Educational initiatives help budding gardeners learn how to work with the area’s native flora.
$500 will buy: A month of soil materials for potting plants.
If You Want to Support Youth and Families
9. Playtime Project
Kids experiencing housing insecurity have an opportunity to play each week when this organization brings games and snacks to local shelters. It also takes children on fun excursions to local spots such as the zoo.
$100 will buy: Four Playtime to Go Kits stocked with games and toys.
10. Rainbow Families
The nonprofit provides a support system for LGBTQ+ families, offering parenting classes and support groups on topics such as adoption, transgender parenting, grief in family building, and more.
$500 will buy: A Maybe Baby course for two sets of prospective parents.
11. Second Story
Northern Virginia’s emergency home for youth runs a program that gives young adults access to case-management services, housing, and mental-health resources such as counseling.
$500 will buy: Three weeks of daily counseling for a teen.
12. Best Kids
Young people in the foster-care system are paired with one-on-one mentors for additional support. The nonprofit also organizes group activities such as rock climbing and improv classes.
$1,000 will buy: Expenses for one peer-group activity serving 15 kids.
If You Want to Support Civic Engagement and Advocacy
13. DC Peace Team
This organization runs trainings for DC residents on nonviolent skills to resolve conflict, including active-bystander intervention and de-escalation. It also has educational programs on anti-racism, covering topics like microaggressions, white fragility, and implicit bias.
$100 will buy: Anti-racism training for two people.
14. Empower DC
Founded in 2003 by local organizers, the nonprofit empowers low-income residents to advocate for a range of community issues, from affordable housing and environmental justice to racial equity and the fight against displacement.
$100 will buy: Food for one Empower DC membership meeting.
15. Collective Action for Safe Spaces
In an effort to make DC safe for all—especially those with marginalized identities—this group educates people on how to take action when they witness or experience street harassment. Trainings center the experiences of those impacted by such violence.
$500 will buy: A year of reading materials for a transformative-justice study group.
16. Harriet’s Wildest Dreams
The Black-led nonprofit works with an abolitionist framework, holding police and the judicial system accountable through direct-response trainings and collective court-watching.
$1,200 will buy: A month of post-release housing for a Black mother.
If You Want to Support Food and Housing Security
17. American Muslim Senior Society
This organization’s Halal Meals on Wheels program provides culturally appropriate food for more than 600 Montgomery County seniors. Volunteers speaking a variety of languages connect with elders to help them access housing and transit.
$100 will buy: Delivery of eight meals.
18. Breadcoin Foundation
The nonprofit provides food-insecure people in the area with “tokens” valued at $2.50. They can be used to buy food at nearly 70 participating restaurants and shops around Washington.
$100 will buy: 10 to 15 restaurant meals.
19. Wanda Alston Foundation
Named after activist Wanda Alston, this group provides at-risk or homeless LGBTQ+ youth with transitional housing, skills training, and employment resources.
$500 will buy: A month of Metro transportation for five young people.
20. Hope Multiplied
Families without a reliable food source can obtain healthy meals through this organization’s food-distribution program, Healthy Start. The nonprofit has also begun establishing community gardens at local schools, to grow vegetables kids can pick and eat.
$1,000 will buy: Two monthly food distributions.
For more information or to donate to any of these nonprofits, visit Spur Local at spurlocal.org/doinggood.
This article appears in the December 2023 issue of Washingtonian.
Daniella Byck joined Washingtonian in 2022. She was previously with Outside Magazine and lives in Takoma.
