Welcome to February, Greater Washington! Here are some great destinations for the weekend …

Arlingtonians Meeting Emergency Needs (N 16th Street and Sycamore Street off Roosevelt Street, Falls Church)

Join a 3-month training program to prepare for the Parkway Classic Ten Miler and 5K on April 22, 2012 — new and experienced runners are all welcome! This Saturday at 9:00 AM marks the first of the training runs. Learn more on the AMEN page.

L’Arche Greater Washington, DC (Call (202) 232-4539 for event location)
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Wishing you a good weekend, Greater Washington! We’ve got some great events coming up …

The Snowy Day at Adventure Theatre (Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Boulevard, Glen Echo)

Celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first American picture book to feature an African-American child as the main character. The simple tale of a boy waking up to discover that snow has fallen is brought to life in the magical world premiere, starting this Friday at 7:00 PM and continuing on the weekend at 11:00 AM and 2:00 PM. Tickets right here!

Decadent Delights at Neediest Kids (Carnegie Institution of Science, 1530 P Street NW)

Enjoy an afternoon of “Decadent Delights” to benefit thousands of children in need in the DC Metro area this Saturday at 2:00 PM — you won?t be able to resist the sumptuous treats from a variety of notable confectionaries in the region. Family and individual tickets available here.
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Tackling Alzheimer’s Disease (WAMU: The Diane Rehm Show): “We all understand that Alzheimer’s disease is a major challenge for the country and for patients and their families, and, until now, we have not had a unified national effort to address this challenge. So a year ago, the president signed the National Alzheimer’s Project Act into law, and through his commitment, this law requires our Department of Health and Human Services to establish the first-ever national Alzheimer’s plan,” said Howard Koh, assistant secretary for health at the Department of Health and Human Services. The IONA Senior Services (a CFP nonprofit) Director of Consultation, Care Management, and Counseling Deborah Rubenstein was a guest on the show, which you can listen to right here.
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Have a good Friday, Greater Washington! We have some great events, particularly volunteer opportunities, coming up for this Martin Luther King Day weekend.

Weekend Events

Head to Capitol Hill Arts Workshop on Friday at 7:00 PM for a free tango practica, open to dancers of all experience levels. Also at 7:00 PM, the semi-finalists of the DCAC decathlon will exhibit their works, all exploring the significance of being an “unspecialized” working artist. On Saturday at 8:00 PM and Sunday at 3:00 PM, Fairfax Symphony Orchestra presents Masterworks Concert #4, featuring cellist Sergey Antonov, at George Mason University’s Center for the Arts.

Monday Service Opportunities

Join Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment at 10:00 AM in Bancroft Park (Arlington) to clean up a section of the Four Mile Run road and keep trash out of the County’s largest stream watershed. Starting at 10:30 AM, Volunteer Fairfax invites you to its third annual Give Together: A Family Volunteer Day, expanding this year to Fairfax City, Herndon, and Alexandria; all service projects are targeted towards elementary-aged children and geared toward the involvement of the entire family. Last but not least, Rock Creek Conservancy will offer seven projects in Aspen Hill and Redland, MD, and around the DC area: tidy up community gardens, save large trees, and remove invasive plants, all starting at 10:00 AM (two events are already full).

Welcome to the first “Around Town” of 2012! Looking forward to many more …

Fairfax Court Appointed Special Advocates (4103 Chain Bridge Road, Suite 200, Fairfax, VA)

Fairfax CASA will be welcoming new volunteers begins this month! For those already accepted into the program, training starts on Saturday. For those interested in applying, the first information session is on Monday at noon. A CASA is a crucial advocate for children whose families have been cited for abuse and neglect.

National Philharmonic (Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, MD)

At 3:30 PM on Saturday, experience Bach’s unaccompanied cello suites from Zuill Bailey, widely considered one of the leading cellists of his generation. And at 8:00 PM, enjoy works from Beethoven, Hayden, and Mozart (with a lectured offered at 6:45 PM). Tickets this way!
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First events blog of December! Plenty of ways to meet our non-profits coming up …

Capitol Hill Arts Workshop (545 7th Street SE)

Free Tango Practica! Tango dancers of all levels have an opportunity to practice, collaborate, and learn in a collective space on Friday at 7:00 PM.

WSC Avant Bard (at Artisphere, 1101 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA)

Last chance! The one-evening adaptation of Shakespeare’s enthralling history plays Henry IV: Parts 1 and 2, closes this weekend. Catch it on Friday and Saturday at 7:30 PM and Saturday and Sunday at 2:00 PM. Tickets right here.
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Happy Thanksgiving, Greater Washington! If you’re looking to support or volunteer with an organization in your neighborhood on this coming holiday weekend, we have the list for you. Check out what’s needed and what you can do at some of CFP’s human service nonprofits. (And we’ll be back to our regular GoodWorks programming on Monday)

Carpenter’s Shelter: Alexandria, VA

Each family, more than 100 in total, in the Aftercare program receives a basket full of essential ingredients for Thanksgiving dinner. Items needed range from boxes of stuffing to mashed potatoes to ziploc bags. Full list right here:

Doorways for Women and Families: Arlington, VA

Doorways, which strives to end domestic violence and homelessness, offers 6 ways to help out throughout this holiday season, including sponsoring a family and purchasing cards drawn by a child in the housing program.

FACETS Cares: Fairfax, VA

Seeking cooks for Turkeys and side dishes (ingredients provided) on November 22-24, volunteers to assemble and deliver food on Thanksgiving, AND food drive assistants that weekend! All info is right here.

Food for Others: Fairfax, VA

A full calendar of volunteer opportunities from 9 AM to 5 PM today and tomorrow includes directing truck traffic, sorting food, and distributing it to clients. Interested? Read the full schedule here or email nclifford@foodforothers.org.

Lorton Community Action Center: Lorton, VA

In serving clients of diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds, LCAC is not seeking the traditional American Thanksgiving provisions. A complete list is right here. The drop-off date was last Sunday, but give LCAC a call (contact info below) to see if they have everything that they need.

Manna Food Center: Gaithersburg, MD

Check out Channel 9′s report on Manna’s “need for turkeys” (and other protein items) from earlier this month. You can drop off food donations from 8 AM to 4 PM today and tomorrow, but locations are closed on Thursday.

Miriam’s Kitchen: Washington, DC

All volunteer spots are booked for Thanksgiving, but do check out the coverage of Miriam’s Kitchen on USA Today. This holiday, Miriam’s will be serving 150 homeless people its first all-organic or local Thanksgiving dinner (turkey included).

Our Daily Bread: Fairfax, VA

Every Saturday, November 5 through December 10, Our Daily Bread and Combined Properties host a fall food drive; full list of locations here. You also can sponsor a family through the holiday season.

Have a good weekend, Greater Washington! We have a bundle of events coming right up …

Help the Homeless Walkathon (National Mall between 9th and 12th Street)

On Saturday morning, join in the nation’s largest walk and benefit a CFP nonprofit: Samaritan Inns, The Dwelling Place, Miriam’s Kitchen, and Bright Beginnings are all taking part. Register here — it’s a great way to give back just before Thanksgiving.
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Welcome to mid-November! Just one week ago today, we introduced you to our new class of CFP nonprofits. So now, we’d like to show how you can learn even more about them online.

First, head to the “Our Nonprofits” section of the CFP homepage and click on any of the five categories. Let’s go with “Nature.” From there, let’s get to know one of our new organizations: Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment. And if you scroll down on ACE’s page, you will see this menu:

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Happy (almost) Halloween, Greater Washington! Before trick-or-treating on Monday, consider spending a weekend day with one of our non-profits. We have great events coming up at …

Earth Sangha (at Rocky Run Stream Valley Park, Awbrey Patent Drive, Centreville, VA)

Enrich this stream-buffer site with a planting of native wildflowers and other herbaceous & small woody plants around Rocky Run on Saturday from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM. More volunteer info available here.

Glen Echo Park Partnership for Arts and Culture (at Glen Echo Park’s Bumper Car Pavilion, 7300 MacArthur Boulevard, Glen Echo, MD)

“Fall Frolic” is a FREE public Halloween-themed festival on Saturday from 1:00 to 4:00 PM. Activities include hands-on crafts, face painting, pumpkin decorating, costume parade, and studio visits. Full schedule right here.

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