2009 DAMASCUS HELP SUMMARY REPORT
OUR MISSION STATEMENT
The purpose of this corporation is exclusively charitable, as that term is used in Section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code. We provide assistance to needy persons and families in the upper portion of Montgomery County, MD and adjacent areas in the form of emergency food, holiday food baskets and gifts, transportation, furniture and emergency financial assistance. No one shall be denied service because of race, color, creed, age, sex, or marital status.
SERVICE AREA
We serve the areas of upper Montgomery County covered by zip codes 20871, 20872, 20882 north of Brink Rd and 20876 from route 27 north of Brink Rd. We also assist those in need in the southeast portion of Frederick County covered by zip codes 21754 (east of route 75) and 21770 (south of route 80).
GENERAL CHAIRPERSON
In 2009, we settled into our new food pantry and with the tremendous amount of food donated, we ran out of storage. We thank the Damascus American Legion for their continued support in letting us use their building for storage and the big November sorting day. Our thanks to all the people who volunteered to sort and move the food to our pantry. With the support from our community we have helped over 6,000 people in 2009. We participated in the School Supplies Program and the Holiday Basket Giving Project with Faith Connections. Our dedicated volunteers have donated many hours to carry out our mission and we thank them.
We held our 39th CROP WALK and look forward to the 40th next October. It has been said that we are the oldest continuous CROP WALK in the USA. We ate out on Thanksgiving in February (TIF) day to raise funds to feed the hungry in Montgomery County. Our thanks to Susan Causey who started the Empty Bowls Luncheon which was held again to benefit Damascus Help at the Damascus Community Center. It was again a great success, raising $2,921 for Help. In the fall of 2009, we were included in the United Way and Combined Federal Campaigns. We also receive donations through the America’s Charities and the Wells Fargo Community Support. In November, I was honored to accept a certificate of outstanding service from the Montgomery County Council for Damascus Help. At that time I thanked on the local TV station all of our volunteers who have helped Damascus Help fulfill the mission of helping our neighbors in need.
FOOD COMMITTEE
The Food Committee is comprised of five sub groups – Food Donations, Food Purchasing, Food Sorting, Food Delivery and Frozen Food. In 2009 we received a record amount of food donations from local Scouting and community organizations, schools, churches, individuals, corporations and small businesses. In fact we received double the amount of food compared to last year. However, many families have experienced a loss of their jobs, reduced government support, illnesses, etc. so the need continues to require more and more assistance.
The Food Donation Group is responsible for picking up food from organizations and individuals as required. They sometimes also assist with the major sorting that occurs during the holiday period of Nov.-Dec. when the Scouts and Schools have large food collection programs. They also meet individuals/organizations/wholesalers who deliver to the Food Pantry.
The Food Purchasing Group is responsible for buying items such as eggs, margarine, chicken, ground beef, fresh vegetables and fruit. It also purchases items that have not been donated such as toilet paper, detergent, bars of soap, instant coffee, grape jelly, tea, etc. Total food purchased in 2009 (excluding that from the Frozen Food Group) was $9,712.98.
The Food Sorting Group is responsible for examining every item donated for condition and “use by” date. The items are then sorted by type and date stored on shelves. Any expired items are thrown away. This group is also responsible for stocking the shelves that are used by the food drivers when making food deliveries.
The Food Delivery Group is responsible for contacting the families who require emergency food, determining the families’ food requirements and then picking up the food at the Food Pantry and delivering it to the families.
The Frozen Food Group purchases hot dogs and cheese. In 2009, 799 packages of cheese and 805 packages of hot dogs were purchased at a cost of $2,990.97.
2009 Totals
|
Total Number of Food Donation Organizations/Individuals |
148 |
|
Total Program Services Purchases |
$68.33 |
|
Total Food Purchases |
$12,703.95 |
|
Total Families Delivered |
668 |
|
Total Adults Delivered |
1423 |
|
Total Children Delivered |
1272 |
Food Purchases By Month
Number of Families Delivered By Month
FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE COMMITTEE
Financial assistance is given to people who are screened
according to our procedures and guidelines. Some are referred to
other social service agencies such as Montgomery County Department of Health
and Human Services and help organizations in the people’s areas.
In 2009, we assisted 200 families of which there were 317 adults and 297 children for a total of 614 people with expenditures of $42,778.21. Forty-four percent of the 200 families were helped to stop terminations of electric. The same amount as in 2008. The percentage of families assisted for natural gas was 4%, fuel oil 5%, water 15%, medical 24%, housing 6% and miscellaneous 2%. We refer people first to the Montgomery County Home Energy Assistance Office to sign up for the Maryland Energy Assistance Program and Electric Universal Service Program grants to help with their main source of heat and their electric usage. These grants help pay a portion of their energy usage for a year, if they qualify. This year again we received a $3,740 fuel fund grant from Allegheny Power to be used for people with electric terminations. Montgomery County residents who don’t have health insurance or whose insurance does not cover the cost of their prescriptions must obtain a Montgomery County Pharmacy Discount Card before we pay for their prescriptions.
FURNITURE COMMITTEE
The Damascus Help Furniture Committee collects and distributes gently used furniture, household items, and clothing. A list of needs is kept by the Chairperson, and when a donation offer is made, the item(s) are matched to a client. The donor may choose to deliver the item or, as in most cases, the item is picked up by committee members. For each donation a tax receipt and thank-you note are given. In some cases, a new bed is purchased for a client. It is important to note that needs increased in 2009 while donations decreased slightly, but urgent needs were always met in a timely fashion.
The Furniture Committee worked cooperatively with other area non-profits organizations. Damascus Help received donations on a regular basis from St. Paul’s Catholic Church (Damascus), Harwood House Thrift Shop (Damascus), Hands of Love, Inc. (Ijamsville), Faith Building Ministries, Inc. (Gaithersburg), and Lucy’s Consignment Shop (Mt. Airy). In turn, items not needed by Damascus Help were given to the Damascus Lions Club (medical equipment), Harwood House (clothing), Hands of Love (furniture) and Faith Building Ministries (furniture). Both Hands of Love and Faith Building Ministries ceased furniture operations mid-2009. The Furniture Committee began working with St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church Furniture Ministry in December of 2009.
Summary:
-Number of donors (individuals, families, organizations): 86
-Clothing vouchers received from Harwood House Thrift Shop: 5
-Donations from St. Paul’s Catholic Church: 28
-Donations from Faith Building Ministries: 31
-Donations from Lucy’s Consignment Shop: 4
-Number of requests: 56 households
-Number of households served: 45 (54 adults, 53 children)
-Number of items placed with Damascus Help clients: 310 items/bags/boxes)
-Number of beds purchased: 11
-Number of items given to other non-profit agencies (Lions Club, Faith Building Ministries, Hands of Love, Harwood House, St. Paul’s Catholic Church): 23
-Number of volunteer movers: 16 individuals.
OFFICER OF THE DAY
The Officer of the Day (OD) takes telephone calls from people seeking our services or wanting information about Damascus Help. The OD then passes the collected information to the appropriate committee volunteer or refers the caller to other county agencies. In addition to these responsibilities, the ODs are instrumental in receiving requests from those in need who wish to participate in the area’s School Supply Project and Holiday Giving Project.
The past year included both change and blessings for the Officer of the Day Team.
Improvements were made to our telephone system. In June a new forwarding system was put into place. The system has streamlined our telephone forwarding abilities and makes it easier for the ODs to receive calls. We also moved the telephone line to a more convenient location. This will allow us to quickly reset the phone in case of a power outage.
The future looks bright. We have updated the OD call log and are currently updating guidelines and resource lists to better support the ODs as they receive calls. Where we have lost ODs during the year, we have filled in new ones or current ODs have graciously filled in. We are currently looking for 3 additional people to complete our monthly schedule. Please contact Damascus Help if you would like to pick up a day.
TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE
During the year 2009, I have been able to determine the following statistics:
We received three inquires about what transportation services we provide which is rides for people within our stated boundaries for medical and social services appointments.
We had requests for 40 rides and provided 17 for 15 riders . Five rides were not provided because they were either out of the area, requested too late or we were unable to reach the client to confirm the need. There were 24 rides cancelled by the clients. A large part of the cancellations were due to hospitalization of the client who needed daily radiation treatment and we were unable to reach the client to reconfirm the need.
During the last half of the year we have had a number of steadfast drivers whom I call “angels”: To all the drivers we have the utmost respect and thankfulness. They have given their time and made their vehicles available at considerable cost without reimbursement.
SPECIAL PROJECTS COMMITTEE
Thanksgiving in February (T.I.F.)
This fund-raiser is coordinated by Interfaith Works of Montgomery County. The participating food banks in Montgomery County which includes Damascus Help share equally in the money that is raised. Each food bank solicits restaurants to participate. The participating restaurants give between 10-20% of that day’s receipts to T.I.F. The participating Damascus restaurants were Ledo Pizza, Tom and Ray’s, Sky Kitchen and Little Far East II. T.I.F. was held on Tuesday, February 17th. The amount Damascus Help received was $2,458.
CROP WALK
The 39th Annual Damascus Crop Walk was held Sunday, October 13th, at Damascus Regional Park from the King's Valley end to Sweepstakes Road and back. The weather was an unusually warm and beautiful fall day. There were 39 adults, 3 children and 2 dogs who participated in the walk. Eleven amateur radio operators from the Damascus Emergency Communications Team held their monthly training that day and helped monitor the safety and well being of the walkers. The following churches and organization had walkers: Christ Lutheran, Damascus First Baptist, Damascus United Methodist, Friendship United Methodist, Hyattstown United Methodist, Montgomery United Methodist, Providence United Methodist, St. Paul Catholic, St. Paul United Methodist, and the Damascus Y-Women. A total of $9,184.05 was raised of which Damascus Help will receive 25%. The other 75% goes for national and world hunger.
HOLIDAY GIVING PROJECT
Value of Goods Provided
Thanksgiving 232 families served est. $35 per family for food baskets for a total of $8120.00
Christmas 294 families served (550 adults, 670 children)
Adult Gifts 550 x $25= $13,750.00 Children Gifts 670 x $50= $33,500
Food 294 families x $35 for food baskets= $10,290
The Christmas total is $57,540 (gifts and food)
The program total is $65,660 (57,540 + 8120)
This is only an estimate, as the gifts and food are in kind donations by various sponsors/providers, so the basket sizes and gift values will vary. I based the per person and per family estimate on our suggested guidelines for gifts and food. This estimate is probably on the conservative side.
Volunteer hours (a conservative estimate)
Core HG team - 270 hours (total program management/call management/delivery/meetings)
Secondary sponsors- (goods collection/shopping/phone calls/delivery)
Thanksgiving - 232 hours (1 hour per family)
Christmas - 882 hours (3 hours per family)
Total estimated volunteer hours =1384
Language statistics
70 Spanish speaking families, 2 Chinese, 1 Vietnamese, 1 Korean, 12 Other.
Registrations
Total registrations - 383 families
Deleted - 89 or 23% of total
(Duplicates, unable to contact, need not valid, declined, etc.)
Registrations directly through Faith Connections and Damascus HELP registration lines- 174 or 45%
Year over Year Changes
Families served
2009- 232 families served for Thanksgiving, and 294 served for Christmas (12% decrease and 4% increase over 2008)
2008- 264 Families for Thanksgiving, 305 (281) for Christmas (includes 24 group home residents each registered as a separate household vs. in 2009 they registered as 8 households) 281 is a more accurate household # for 2008. (17% and 8% increase over 2007)
2007- 225 families served for Thanksgiving and 260 served for Christmas (17 % and 15% increase over 2006)
2006- 191 families served for Thanksgiving and 226 served for Christmas
Children Served
2009 - 670 children (9% increase)
2008 - 614 children (6% increase)
2007 - 575 children (17% increase)
2006 - 490 children
Sponsors (groups, churches, businesses and organizations)
2009- 42
2008- 45
2007- 52
2006- 49
SCHOOL SUPPLIES PROJECT
School has started and 227 students from the Damascus/Clarksburg area are off to a positive start due to the generosity of our community. Last year school supplies were given to approximately 230 students and in this year’s economic recession the need was just as great. Through the help of local churches, businesses and organizations, Faith Connections (formerly DELAI) and Damascus HELP were able to collect the needed backpacks and school supplies to equip all 227 students, for the first day of school.
A big thank you goes out to all of the people and organizations that donated and collected the school supplies as well as making monetary donations: Damascus Y Women, Damascus Lion’s Club, Weis, Tom & Ray’s, Music Café, Curves, Fitness 4 You, Damascus Senior Center, Damascus Community Bank, First Baptist Church, St. Anne’s Episcopal Church, Montgomery UMC, Tri-County Baptist Church, St. Paul Catholic Church, Redeemer Lutheran Church, PR Family Associates, the Melzer Group, Damascus Community Road Church, Damascus Post Office, Dance Studio of Damascus, Ruyter’s Academy of Martial Arts, Damascus Hairstylist, Upper Seneca Baptist Church, Lakewood Church of God, Potomac Valley Assembly, Bethesda United Methodist Church, and many individual people within our community. The collection and packing of the backpacks was supported by Damascus United Methodist Church’s Youth Group. A huge thank you goes to all the teens and adults that worked to organize and manage this project.
Back to school time can be very expensive, especially for families that have limited or fixed incomes, so a new backpack filled with necessary school supplies can be a wonderful gift to both the students and their parents. Without the community’s help we would not have been able to help so many students. I would like to thank the community for unselfishly helping others in need. Damascus is a community that cares!
VOLUNTEER COORDINATOR
Damascus HELP has approximately 75 volunteers who dedicate their time and effort to serving the Damascus Community. Damascus HELP is continually looking for volunteers to be Officers of the Day, food drivers, client drivers, food sorters, pantry donation transporters, bilingual translators, a financial assistance caseworker, and an assistant Crop Walk coordinator. Volunteers are recruited through articles in church bulletins, flyers, and monthly newsletters. HELP was fortunate to gain 20 returning and new volunteers in 2009. Three previous volunteers returned to their positions as Officers of the Day. Three new volunteers signed on to be Officers of the Day. A previous volunteer returned to the position of food driver. Joining him in that position were six new volunteers. We had one volunteer become a Spanish translator. Three people became pantry donation transporters and three became new food sorters for 2009. We got a new Officer of the Day Chairman and a new Transportation Chairman. One of the food drivers became the Food Driver Coordinator. There were ten individuals who left Damascus HELP to pursue other endeavors.
TREASURER’S REPORT - William Mahylis
2009 Income
Allegheny Power Grant 3,740.00
America’s Charities 2,318.22
Business 3,740.00
Churches 16,698.24
Combined Federal Campaign 18,750.88
CROP Walk 2,686.93
Empty Bowls 2,921.00
Individuals 13,532.00
Investment 10.91
Organizations 2,561.27
Thanksgiving In Feb. 2,457.69
United Way 2,903.07
Wells Fargo Campaign 465.00
Total Income 72,785.21
2009 Expenses
Administration 25.20
Financial Assistance
Childcare 141.00
Clothing 26.49
Funeral 500.00
Healthcare 4,308.72
Housing 7,591.30
Utilities 34,162.15
Groceries 12,880.83
Holiday Giving 575.06
Program Services 2,125.81
School Supplies 225.00
Total Expenses 62,561.56
GRAND TOTAL 10,223.65
Net Worth As of 12/31/2009
Bank and Cash Accounts 36,968.16
Investment Accounts 36,201.84
Total Net Worth 73,170.00