Media Release: Fairfax Nonprofit Britepaths Seeking Donations to Help Fairfax County Area Families Put Food On the Table This Holiday Season
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Lisa Whetzel, LWhetzel@britepaths.org, 703.273.8829
FAIRFAX, VA (November 9, 2023) – Fairfax-based nonprofit Britepaths is seeking financial donations from the community to provide grocery store gift cards to 265 Fairfax County area families who are experiencing food insecurity to help them keep food on the table during the upcoming holidays and long school breaks.
Britepaths is partnering with seven Fairfax County Public Schools to receive referrals for families with demonstrated need for assistance. Donations from the community will help Britepaths purchase grocery store gift cards that staff at the partner schools will provide to students’ parents so the families can purchase needed food during the Thanksgiving and December breaks. Participating schools, listed below, are in the Fairfax High School and Justice High School pyramids, serving families who live in the City of Fairfax, central Fairfax County, and the Falls Church area.
To learn more and donate online, visit http://britepaths.org/holiday. Checks may be mailed to Britepaths at 3959 Pender Drive, Suite 200, Fairfax, VA 22030. Please write “Holiday 23” in the check memo line. Program sponsorships are also available. Donations accepted through December 31. For more information, contact Britepaths at 703.273.8829 or events@britepaths.org.
Britepaths’ Executive Director Lisa Whetzel said, “In our prosperous area, it is startling to think that 41% of Fairfax County households with children experience food insecurity*. For many of us, November and December are a time for celebrations and holiday traditions. For the families Britepaths serves, whose budgets are already stretched far too thin, it means making heartbreaking choices.”
Whetzel added, “Children who receive free and reduced-price meals at school will soon be home on long breaks and their parents will be challenged to put food on the table at a time of year when so many of us are enjoying great bounty. Supporting Britepaths’ Holiday program is a wonderful way to make a real difference for neighbors who live very near us at this special time of year.”
Britepaths is grateful to its Holiday Program sponsors: SAIC, American Legion Post 177 in Fairfax, Walmart Fairfax Supercenter #2015 and the Richard W. Averill Foundation.
Britepaths’ FCPS Partner Schools:
Fairfax High School Pyramid
- Daniels Run Elementary
- Eagle View Elementary
- Fairfax High
- Katherine Johnson Middle
- Providence Elementary
Justice High School Pyramid
- Glen Forest Elementary
- Justice High
About Britepaths
In 2024, Britepaths will celebrate 40 years of providing help, hope, and a path forward for Fairfax County area and Northern Virginia residents experiencing a financial crisis. In Fiscal Year 2023, the organization served 7,999 households, impacting the lives of 11,555 people. Throughout the year, the organization relies on funding and volunteer support from businesses, individuals, community groups and faith communities to provide services that: Stabilize Families with supplemental food and financial assistance; offer Personal Empowerment through financial education and workforce development coaching, workshops and training. Britepaths’ Supports for Children includes Back to School partnerships, Food4Thought weekend food kits, and Holiday meal assistance for families, helping thousands of children year-round. More information is available at: britepaths.org.
* Source: Capital Area Food Bank, 2022 Hunger Report
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