CORNERSTONES INC
11150 Sunset Hills Rd Ste 210, Reston, VA 20190 www.cornerstonesva.org

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Organizations Filed Purposes: Now in its 50th year of service, Cornerstones promotes self-sufficiency by providing support and advocacy for those in need of food, shelter, affordable housing, quality childcare, and other human services. Cornerstones' programs offer stability, empowerment and hope for Northern Virginia's most vulnerable populations. Founded in 1970 with a mission to make affordable housing more accessible to area residents, Cornerstones is now a leading human services and social justice organization, touching the lives of 16,000 people each year and contributing to the well-being of Northern Virginia. Working in intentional and innovative partnership with community members, government, corporate, faith-based and civic organizations and our supporters, Cornerstones' award-winning work has changed lives and sustained communities, enriching those we serve and those who serve in equal measure.

Cornerstones' mission is to promote equitable solutions to poverty through access to resources, strategic partnerships, and systems change.

Stability: Stability services provide vital support to vulnerable neighbors in times of crisis, offering swift triage for people in need of emergency shelter, food, financial assistance to avert eviction or utilities shutoffs, and other safety-net services. During fiscal year 2020, Cornerstones provided street outreach, emergency shelter and hypothermia prevention for a total of 770 people, including 100 families and 214 children. We helped families avert financial crisis and offset the high cost of living, providing food, gift cards, diapers and household supplies to 1,748 (unduplicated) households, representing 5,547 people this year - 2,721 of them children and youth.Cornerstones' ability to quickly mobilize and scale programs was critical to protecting our community during the Coronavirus pandemic that completely overshadowed the last three months of our fiscal year. In Cornerstones' five decades of service in Northern Virginia, never have we seen something with such immediate impact on all families and affecting all community sectors. Cornerstones worked with Fairfax County to convert a hotel to provide a safe space for people who are homeless or living in unsafe housing to isolate or recover after being diagnosed with COVID-19. The Assistance Services and Food Pantry Program staff provided safe, no-contact distribution of fresh produce, pantry staples, and personal protection equipment (PPE) items from parking lots, frequently in conjunction with Health Department's COVID-19 testing events. Although limited in their traditional support roles due to safety protocols, dedicated volunteers continue to help us tend to the needs of individuals and seniors unable to leave their homes. In just the first three months of the pandemic (April-June 2020), 621 households received food pantry assistance from Cornerstones for the first time, a 216% increase over the same period in 2019. Overall, Cornerstones provided $200,000 in rent and utility assistance and $41,000 in grocery and department store gift cards to supplement household budgets for 6,100 people served through Cornerstones' pandemic safety-net services.

Empowerment: Cornerstones is unique as a safety net provider in that programs offer ongoing support and counsel after the crisis is passed, through client-driven, wrap-around resources to help families and individuals gain stability and thrive. These programs include an affordable housing rental program, youth services that include quality, developmental childcare for low-income working parents and after school enrichment and STEAM activities, employment readiness and job coaching, housing and home ownership counseling, community and neighborhood resource centers in low-income neighborhoods, US citizenship preparation and our signature community care management program that help people navigate and obtain vital human resources and self-sufficiency resources. Through our affiliate housing organization, Cornerstones provided affordable rental housing and care management services to 129 households, waiving late fees and securing rental assistance for those who lost jobs or became ill during the pandemic. We continue to actively seek opportunities to partner in, develop, or purchase apartment communities. During FY20 Cornerstones, Inc. entered into a joint venture agreement with Wellington Development, LLC, an experienced private developer of affordable housing, to develop affordable workforce and permanent supportive housing in Loudoun County, Virginia and referred to as Tuscarora Crossing. Cornerstones Housing Corporation, Cornerstones' affordable housing affiliate, will collaborate in the work on this project.The pandemic forced the temporary closure of programs located in government buildings and community sites, affecting our childcare center, after-school, food pantry and community centers programs. Knowing the importance of these essential programs, Cornerstones quickly responded, re-imagining and redesigning front-line services to engage people safely, and equip our teams with tools to recreate programs virtually. Laurel Learning Center safely re-opened as a critical childcare resource for low-income working parents and essential workers, opening a special school day program to bridge the digital divide and support students in distance learning. Youth afterschool programs reinvented programming virtually for kids and parents to support homework and avoid learning loss together these programs served 239 youth and their families. Cornerstones provided the backbone technology for neighborhood ambassadors to create a peer support network for parents and seniors in each neighborhood to combat the isolation caused by the pandemic.

Hope: Hope captures Cornerstones' work as an advocate for changes in policies and systems to advance equitable reduction of poverty and ending homelessness. Driving change includes engaging and amplifying the voices of our low-income neighbors and clients. Cornerstones leads Opportunity Neighborhoods in Reston and Herndon, collaborative community-partnerships designed to promote success for children and youth. This effort includes engaging local leaders and advocating for more connections between school, neighborhoods, and community services. We provided organizing support in low-income housing communities to help residents improve their environment and access needed services. In the wake of the pandemic, Cornerstones convened virtual events for families in low-income neighborhoods, inviting partners who could advise tenants of their rights under the Eviction Moratorium, or how to access stimulus and unemployment benefits. Cornerstones and its subsidiary housing corporation advocate for policies that address the root causes of poverty and in particular the stark lack of affordable housing in the DC region. Cornerstones' CEO co-chairs the Fairfax County Affordable Housing Advisory Committee, overseeing the development of a County-wide Housing Strategic Plan. She was recently awarded the Leadership Fairfax Institute's Nonprofit Leader award honoring leaders who have made a significant impact through a passionate commitment to community partnerships and volunteer service, and to furthering Leadership Fairfax's mission to convene meaningful discussions and strategic thinkers to address community issues. CHC's Executive Vice President works with peer public and private leaders in affordable housing-related committees, task forces, and working groups across Northern Virginia, and was awarded the 2019 Northern Virginia Affordable Housing Alliance Regional Housing Leader's Award in recognition for his distinguished career working and volunteering for organizations that help the homeless, and low-income households find affordable places to live.

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