From musical performances to photography, writing, or creating informative campaign videos, Catalogue nonprofits were busy highlighting their projects and important work in the community this week.

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Catalogue for Philanthropy charities found many creative ways to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a day “ON” to give back to the community and reflect on Dr. King’s important work. In addition to highlighting Catalogue charities’ volunteer efforts, one of our charities is also celebrating a wonderful partnership this week! See below the video for details.

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As organizations across the DC Metro region prepare for the harsh winter season, our charities are getting ahead of the game with successful hunger-awareness campaigns, winter coat drives, and MORE (details after the video)!

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“What’s Up” this week?

• Good Shepherd Housing and Family Services distributed coats to clients in advance of the upcoming winter chill. As you can see in the video, today an adorable little one (and his mom) stopped by.

• Girls on the Run DC learned that “It Takes Courage” – The girls learned the importance of standing up for themselves and using appropriate assertive behavior as well as practice these skills. They were also understanding the importance of using one’s own voice and constructively expressing their feelings, wants, and needs.

• Our Daily Bread and Food for Others celebrated food, art and fun! Both organizations gathered more than 1,000 community members in Fairfax City on Sunday at Complete the Circle FoodRaiser 2014. They created a cool Art For The Sky photo, enjoyed live music, food and kids’ activities and raised $15,300 worth of food, grocery gift cards and cash donations to help neighbors in need throughout the Fairfax County area.

• …and also, Parkinson Foundation of the National Capital Area helped others fight off Parkinson’s Disease through exercise!

Still waiting for the 2014-2015 Catalogue for Philanthropy to arrive in your mailbox? If you haven’t already previewed our digital edition, we’ve put together a small sneak peek for you here.

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So, what’s new in this year’s Catalogue for Philanthropy (aside from 78 hardworking, inspiring charities)? A few things!

• More details about our vetting and selecting process: This year, we’re giving readers a closer look at the vetting and selecting process that takes places each year, from January (when charities are invited to apply) to May (when we announce our final selections). You can also learn more on our website, here.
• Easier access our charities: Find a charity that interests you? No need to search for it online — simply use the web address at the end of their Catalogue write-up (ex: cfp-dc.org/riverkeeper) to go to that charity’s Catalogue page to donate, find volunteer opportunities, or connect via social media.
• The ability to take the Catalogue “on the go” with you: The Catalogue for Philanthropy is now fully mobile! In addition to our mobile/tablet-friendly website, you can also access a digital edition of the Catalogue that looks just like the copy you received in the mail. Simply send a text message to 51555 with Cataloguerequest in the body of the message. From there, you’ll receive a link to the Catalogue!

 
We hope you’ll become inspired not only by the organizations you find in this year’s Catalogue, but also the 331 on our website. The Catalogue is the only guide to giving that uses local experts to evaluate and identify the best small charities across our region, so you can feel confident that your support will always make a real impact — here, where you live.

And we promise — We’ll be back to our regularly-scheduled “Whats Up Wednesday” programming next week!

When we last checked, today’s weather forecast called for rain with a 100% chance of “#WhatsupWednesday”…so, who are we to prove the weatherman wrong? Check out the video below to see all of the great things Catalogue for Philanthropy nonprofits are up to this week.

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Some highlights from the video:

• Today, young men from Free Minds Book Club & Writing Workshop appeared at a DC City Council meeting to voice their full support for the Youth Offender Accountability and Rehabilitation Act. The actual legislation can be found here, and information on what it all means can be found here.

• Senior Services of Alexandria and Alexandria’s Division of Aging and Adult Services participated in an event at the Watergate at Landmark, a community where nearly 60% of residents are seniors. Senior Services gave an overview of its programs and services they offer to Alexandria’s seniors.

• The Literacy Lab kicked off their new social media campaign! You can find their Facebook page here to learn more.

• Students at DC SCORES began to practice reading their original poetry aloud!

• Arlington-Alexandria Coalition for the Homeless (new ’14-’15 charity)began recruiting a new class of participants for their next 8-week Microbusiness Academy session starting in mid-January. Know someone who wants to see if entrepreneurship is right for them? Contact AACH!

• Joseph’s House welcomed the entire Washington AIDS Partnership AmeriCorps Team for their “fifth day” service project to help with decorations for a “Frozen Halloween.” Next week they will join others in their neighborhood to welcome hundreds of local youth to Lanier Place for trick-or-treating.

• Carpenter’s Shelter introduced its newest giving circle for Young Philanthropists! Find more details here.

Congrats on another great week! T-Minus 9 days until the release of the 2014-2015 Catalogue!