Monthly Archives: February 2021

The Give: Make-A-Wish

Community,

 

Make-A-Wish is a local organization dedicated to granting wishes to children right here in our backyard. Their mission is to create life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses. For them, granting wishes goes beyond nice things or gifts. They are impactful for everyone involved, including families, sponsors, donors, medical professionals, and the communities, giving them courage and optimism.

Covid-19 has created new challenges for us all and has even forced Make-A-Wish to put a few wishes on hold. Lesli Creedon, the President and CEO of the Make-A-Wish Mid-Atlantic chapter, also explains that isolated children, due to the nature of their illnesses, find their support circles are growing smaller because their families are at risk. In April 2019, about 90% of their wishes – meeting a celebrity or going to Disney World – were put on hold until it is safer. Almost a year later and their wishes remain on pause.

As a part of “The Give” campaign with Easterns Automotive Group, they are currently working to send more of what they call “wish enhancements,” including goodie bags and care packages, to let the children know they are not alone.

They have also partnered with athletes like Tom Wilson from the Washington Capitals, who recently purchased a ton of wish enhancements and surprised them with a message to let them know that he is thinking of them.

It is a pleasure to be apart of “The Give” campaign to help make sure the Mid-Atlantic chapter of Make-A-Wish can continue to make dreams a reality for these children.

Helping Hands – Frontline Healthcare Workers at Inova Fairfax

Community,

Hospitals are still working diligently to care for COVID-19 patients. Even though it may seem as if the world is returning to some form of normalcy, hospital workers are the true heroes that face the real effects of COVID-19 every day. We wanted to step up and show our frontline healthcare workers that we appreciate them.

We surprised 150 healthcare workers at Inova Fairfax with lunch from Ciao Osteria in Centreville! Joel Bassam joined virtually to share how Easterns Automotive Group wanted to highlight the true heroes who keep everyone safe during this crisis. It is necessary to show them that we cherish their endless hard work and care for our loved ones during this trying time.

The Inova Fairfax Covid response team appreciated the community working together to thank them for their commitment. Ciao Osteria’s owner expressed how important it is that we take care of each other, and we couldn’t agree more!

Helping Hands, powered by ABC 7, is always looking to help out people or organizations in need worthy of assistance. If you know someone that fits this description, please?click here?to nominate them

Road to A Better Community – Cool and Dope

Community,

Cavanaugh Bell is an eight-year-old boy from Gaithersburg, MD, who decided to turn his pain from being bullied into a mission to help others.?

After being bullied brought him to a dark place, he was determined to help others never feel the way he did. In response, Cavanaugh and his mother, Lacey, created the non-profit Cool and Dope. It is a tribe of positive creators that has a mission to stop bullying worldwide by 2030.

Even though it started as an anti-bullying campaign during the pandemic, Cavanaugh saw another way to help his community. They created a food pantry, which developed into care packages for families directly impacted by the Coronavirus, and now into mobile pantries. Cavanaugh and his mother drive around to keep the pantries stocked full of free necessities for others whenever they need them. They currently have 8, but their goal is to have ten pantries by the summer.

Cavanaugh’s kindness inspired us at Easterns Automotive Group, so we wanted to help him reach his goal! We were able to surprise him with $1,500! Enough to complete three mobile pantries! Cavanaugh was completely speechless and later expressed how he felt beautiful inside.?

To learn more about Easterns Automotive Group’s partnership with WUSA 9 and how they come together to empower the DMV community, please visit?www.wusa9.com/BetterCommunity

Pay It Forward – Frontline Workers at White Oak Medical Center

Community, Uncategorized,

So many men and women have put themselves in harm’s way to work the frontline. They have spent the past year dedicated to helping those who have contracted COVID-19 while trying to remain safe themselves.?

From the Fox 5 team, Erin Como visited the White Oak Medical Center in Silver Spring, Maryland, to speak with those saving lives on the frontline. Continue reading Pay It Forward – Frontline Workers at White Oak Medical Center →

Helping Hands – Tawana Baylor

Community,

Southwest DC is an area that has been hit hard by the pandemic. In a ward full of residents facing food insecurity, people in the community have stepped up to make sure their neighbors do not go without, like Tawana Baylor. Ms. Tawana works as a violence interrupter in her neighborhood, but she is so much more to the children in her community. Many even said they see her as a second mother.

Tawana feeds the children in her southwest DC neighborhood and has done so for years. She manages a makeshift toy outlet, library, and grocery store all out of her small apartment while creating a safe space for families and children whenever they may need help. She funds her operation by pinching pennies and support from various family, friends, and non-profit agencies.

In this episode of Helping Hands, Ms. Tawana, as everyone calls her, brought balloons to one of her volunteers, Ben, in the community for his birthday, not knowing she was the one actually in for a surprise.

After Ben blew out his candles, Ms. Tawana was surprised with a check for $1,500 from Easterns Automotive Group to help her continue to feed the children in her community. Blown away by her selfless actions, Joel Bassam shared how amazed we are by her work in her community. She was initially in shock and brought to tears. She did not have the words to express her gratitude.

When Ms. Tawana finally found the words to say, she shared how happy she was that she no longer has to pinch pennies to make sure everyone in her community is cared for.

Helping Hands, powered by ABC 7, is always looking to help out people or organizations in need worthy of assistance. If you know someone that fits this description, please?click here?to nominate them.