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May 2013 News   


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Contact Information 
Mailing Address
7200 Columbia Pike
Annandale, VA 22003

 
Information
 
703-256-0100

 
Emergency
Assistance

(Fairfax County)
703-222-0880

 
Donations
(except furniture)
703-256-0100

 
Furniture Donations 
703-256-9513


Email
[email protected]

ACCA Website www.accacares.org

ACCA's Mission  
The Annandale Christian Community for Action (ACCA), is a non-profit coaltion of 26 Annandale-area churches which has been helping the needy in our community for more than 44 years. To learn more about ACCA, visit our website at www.accacares.org.  

Next Meeting
The next meeting will be on 

June 4

St. Paul's Episcopal Church

3439 Payne Street

Falls Church, VA 22041


Refreshments and fellowship - 7:30 p.m.
Meeting - 7:45 p.m.  Open to all visitors.   
  

Volunteers Wanted

On Saturday, May 11, the Post Office will have its yearly food collection.  

 

Volunteers are needed to assist with picking up and transporting the food collected from the Post Office to the ACCA Food Pantry. If you can help, please come to the Post Office in Annandale at 5pm.

 

Thank you!



Spring Print Newsletter

Read the ACCA quarterly print newsletter here. Copies for distribution to ACCA member churches are available for pick up at the CDC office.



ACCA Members
Annandale United Methodist

AUMC - Immanuel Campus

Braddock Baptist

Calvary Church of the Nazarene

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Annandale Ward
and
Little River Ward

Cornerstone Evangelical Free

Culmore United Methodist

First Presbyterian

Friendship United Methodist

Holy Spirit Catholic

Hope Lutheran

John Calvin Presbyterian

Lincolnia United Methodist 

Mt. Pleasant Baptist

Peace Lutheran

Providence Presbyterian

Queen of the Apostles Catholic

Ravenworth Baptist

Sleepy Hollow United Methodist

St. Alban's Episcopal

St. Anthony Catholic

St. Barnabas Episcopal

St. Michael's Catholic

St. Paul's Episcopal

United Baptist

Warner Baptist    

Rebuilding Together: Angels in Disguise    

Volunteers constructed this garden shed with wooden platform and ramp for an elderly homeowner. Click the image to view more photos of our hardworking volunteers.
On April 27, more than 60 volunteers from 11 ACCA churches joined together to work in the annual national Rebuilding Together program. This year, ACCA repaired two homes, both owned by octogenarians. Participating churches including Annandale-Immanuel and Lincolnia United Methodist, Holy Spirit and Queen of Apostles Catholic, John Calvin, Providence and First Presbyterian, Latter Day Saints Annandale and Little River Wards, Ravensworth Baptist and St. Barnabas Episcopal churches. Two students from Bishop Ireton High School also joined in.  

 

Special thanks go to the house captains Brad Moffett, Jim Stewart, Ken Mittelholtz and John Clarke, who put in countless hours scoping out the tasks and supervising the whole effort, and to Marie Monsen, Rebuilding Together coordinator. We also thank the volunteers who gave so generously of their time and talents. Volunteers completed major yard work, bathroom repairs, exterior repairs and painting at one house. Jim Dillon completed the specialized preparation work required before surfaces with lead paint could be repainted. At the other house, volunteers replaced a metal shed, repaired and replaced fencing, gates, carport fascia and gutters, and did major yard work along with some interior plumbing and electrical repairs. As always, the effort was as much a blessing to the volunteers as to the grateful homeowners, one of whom told the Rebuilding Together staff she had a "team of angels" visit her. Rebuilding Together is truly love in action.

'New' Truck Joins ACCA Fleet

 
ACCA President Ken Mittleholtz watches as Fairfax County Supervisor Penny Gross hands over the keys to a surplus county truck for ACCA's use to Don DiSpirito.

Thanks in part to Mason District Supervisor Penny Gross, ACCA acquired a surplus truck from the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department on April 16. Our volunteers managed to get it registered with DMV and insured the same day! A former fire truck, the vehicle has received outstanding maintenance during its twelve-year tenure with the County. The ACCA Furniture Ministry now has four trucks.

Child Development Center   

 
At a Reading is Fundamental (RIF) event, children at the CDC were delighted to receive books to take home and share with their families. Click the photo above to see more pictures from the CDC. 

Affordable Childcare Threatened

Families whose children attend the ACCA Child Development Center (CDC) could be forced to double the amount they pay for childcare if a proposal from the Va. Department of Social Services goes through. The poorest families would see an increase from 2.5 percent to 6 percent of their gross income. At the upper end, families currently paying 6 percent would face an increase to 12 percent of gross income.

 

Many families simply cannot afford to pay double what they are currently paying, and that could lead to a drop in enrollment at ACCA. The CDC offers high quality care and prepares children for success in school. Fairfax County has had a waiver for the last 14 years to set its own rates.

 

People who are concerned about this proposal can make a difference by writing to officials in Richmond to let them know of their support for keeping the waiver in place so low income families can continue to receive quality, affordable childcare. You can comment online at  http://www.dss.virginia.gov/family/ccdf_comments/index.cgi, or send a letter to:


State Plan Public Comments - C.L.
Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Development
Virginia Dept of Social Services
801 East Main Street, 3rd Floor
Richmond, VA 22319-2901 
  
These change will affect every child in Fairfax County receiving the childcare subsidy, not just those at the CDC. The deadline for comments is May 15.     
Upcoming Events  

 

Yard Sale to benefit ACCA's Safe Cribs = Safe Babies, Saturday May 11 at Peace Lutheran Church, 6362 Lincolnia Rd., Alexandria.  

 

Book Club - Interfaith Communities for Dialogue will discuss 12 Steps to a Compassionate Life, Sunday, June 2, 2 pm Ravensworth Baptist Church, RSVP 703-324-3453 or email [email protected]. See flyer here.  

Dialogue - Fairfax County Human Services Council Looking Forward, Looking Back: A Dialogue with the Human Services Community, Saturday, May 18, 8:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m., Government Center, 1200 Government Center Parkway, Fairfax VA 22035. See flyer here.  

 
ACCA Leaders Honored     

   

Fairfax County Supervisor Penny Gross, left, with Mason District Community Champions Ken and Camille Mittelhotlz. The 2013 Fairfax County Volunteer Service Awards were presented on Thursday April 18. Don and Mary Lee Di Spirito and Mary Anne Lecos were also honored at the Volunteer Fairfax event for more than 500 hours of service to the community in the past year. For a complete list of the award winners, visit Volunteer Fairfax. Photo: Jeremy Norwood

Food Pantry    

The pantry made 39 deliveries assisting 132 individuals in April. Belvedere Elementary School families generously resupplied the food shelves. The kindergarten class collected the largest amount of food and each student received a coloring book with stickers.

 

On May 11, the Post Office will have its yearly collection. Volunteers are needed to assist with picking up the collected food and transporting it to the Food Pantry.  If you can help, please come to the Post Office in Annandale at 5pm.

Furniture Ministry

In April, ACCA volunteers delivered furniture to 33 households, representing 126 individuals; of these, 21 households had children under 18, seven include handicapped people, and nine were female-headed households. ACCA churches and organizations providing the volunteer support included, Latter Day Saints, St. Michael and St. Anthony Catholic, St. Alban's and St. Barnabas' Episcopal, Annandale United Methodist and Cornerstone.

 

Family Emergency Assistance  

In April, ACCA provided $13,862 to local families in need of help with their rent, utilities and medical bills. Due to an infection, one client had to have four teeth removed. He was unable to cover the cost of the procedure. ACCA assisted by paying his dental costs.  

 

A single mother with four children works full time and receives no child support, as the father is unemployed. One of the children has sickle cell anemia. The mother missed work because of her son's doctor appointments, and as a result, she fell behind on her electric bill. ACCA was able to pay the overdue electric bill.

 

A family of four needed help paying their overdue April rent. ACCA sent a check to the property owner for the rent. On behalf of all who are served, we thank all who make our work possible.

Transportation and Meals on Wheels   

Volunteers provided 33 rides for 16 clients in April. Meals on Wheels delivered 860 meals to elderly and shut-ins in our area.