LIFT - Washington, DC

LIFT's mission is to help community members achieve economic stability and well-being.We are working to establish a new standard for holistic and enduring solutions in our country's fight against poverty. LIFT currently runs centers staffed by trained volunteers in Boston, Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC, to serve low-income individuals and families. LIFT clients and volunteers work one-on-one to find jobs, secure safe and stable housing, make ends meet through public benefits and tax credits, and obtain quality referrals for services like childcare and healthcare. As a result, the LIFT experience also pushes volunteers to grapple with our country's most challenging issues related to poverty, race, inequality, and policy. Since LIFT's founding, over 5,000 volunteers have served more than 30,000 individuals and families. By 2015, our goal is that 10,000 LIFT volunteers will have advanced 100,000 clients on their path toward economic security and personal success.

LIFT-DC The Washington, DC Local Office was founded in the fall of 1999 by two Georgetown University students, Elena Boyd ('02) and Sarita Daftary ('03). Originally operating out of common rooms on Georgetown University's campus, NSP-DC (now LIFT-DC) officially moved into the Perry School Community Services Center and began operating with regular office hours in the summer of 2000. The Perry School was originally the first high school for African-American students in the District of Columbia and now serves as a hub of community support in northwest Washington DC. LIFT-DC joins a network of vibrant community service agencies and dedicated community residents working to protect affordable housing, safety, and economic opportunity in the neighborhood and in the metropolitan area.

Today, LIFT-DC operates three offices in the District of Columbia. In the spring of 2010, LIFT opened an office in CentroNia in Columbia Heights, offering full services to the growing number of Spanish-speaking DC residents, who often feel that they unable to access public benefits and resources. In early 2011, LIFT opened a third office in THEARC in Ward 8, offering full services east of the Anacostia River.