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.

Pay It Forward – Helping Neighbors in Need

Community, Uncategorized,

 

COVID-19 has turned everyone’s lives upside down, and, amazingly, there are so many people doing extraordinary things to help others during these trying times. A new mom in Maryland named Caroline Dennin wanted to find a way to impact those less fortunate and thought an app connecting neighbors was the perfect way to reach out.?

Caroline decided the Next Door app was the best platform to let others in the community know that she was there to help if needed. It was never her intention to receive so much support. However, by creating so many connections through the app, twenty-five people made donations. With help from others in the community, she provided families with things like groceries and toiletries. Receiving so many contributions, she was able to deliver to 12 local families.?

Inspired by Caroline’s effort to help her neighbors in need, Joel Bassam joined virtually to share some good news! Easterns Automotive wanted help by donating twenty-one $100 gift cards.

The holiday giving didn’t stop there as Mike Thomas from the Fox 5 team continued to give back! As people passed by, Mike asked, “What are you thankful for?” With the past year we have had, it is no surprise that most replied that they are grateful for life and health. He next surprised them with a $100 gift card from Easterns Automotive.?

If you know someone in the DC, Maryland, and Virginia area that goes above and beyond the call and is worthy of being recognized,?Click here?to nominate them.

Helping Hands – “Feast of Sharing: Reimagined”

Community, Uncategorized,

During the pandemic, the holiday season was unbearable for some. Individuals were separated from their families, and others still without employment. Helping Hands, partnering Easterns Automotive Group with ABC 7, worked tirelessly during the holiday season to support those making tremendous efforts in the community.

Right before Thanksgiving at the Walter E Washington Convention Center, the annual “Feast of Sharing” feeds almost 5,000 people. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, the organizers had to rethink how they would continue this holiday tradition of 20 years.?

Kidd O’Shea from the ABC 7 team met with the organizers to hear how they planned to continue to provide for the community despite having to cancel this annual event. Beth Goldburg, Senior Manager of Community & Public Affairs at Safeway, shared that with the new name “Feast of Sharing: Reimagined,” they decided to assemble 5,000 meal boxes and gift bags to be delivered throughout the community. The gift bags were created to help keep people warm during the winter and included hats, scarves, gloves, face masks, and hand sanitizer.

Kidd O’Shea surprised organizer Lara Akinsanya with 600 scarves from Easterns Automotive Group. Lara expressed her excitement and how they were struggling to receive scarves. Inspired by their ability to pivot to continue to help people in need, Joel Bassam, director of marketing for Easterns Automotive Group, shared a special message with their team.?

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.

Helping Hands – Tummy Yumyum

Community,

COVID-19 has left some individuals in unfortunate circumstances. Some are still without jobs and the support they had before. However, it is incredible to see people in our community pull together to help one another during this time, like Sharita Rouse, the owner of gourmet candy apple store Tummy Yumyum in Manassas, VA.?

Sharita says, in 2008, God directed her to open a candy apple store, even though she had never made candy apples before. One day, someone stopped by her store looking for food, and again she says God directed her to start feeding anyone in need without asking, and since then, she has been feeding individuals for over ten years through her business. Due to the influx of people in need during the pandemic, Sharita began to provide hot meals for about 500-600 people a week from her candy apple storefront.?

It is always a pleasure to partner with ABC 7’s Helping Hands initiative and give back to those doing incredible work in the community. Presented by Kidd Oshea, we were excited to surprise Tummy YumYum with $1500 to go towards her actions in the Manassas community.?

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.

Pay It Forward – Ana Romero

Community,

Ana Romero doesn’t want anyone to experience what she went through during the pandemic and uses what she learned from her experience to help others. She now uses what she learned to help her community. Ana’s actions inspired us on our Pay It Forward with Fox 5 DC that we had to surprise her with something special.?

Ana contracted COVID-19 resulting in her spending a week in the hospital. Even though Ana was finally able to return home, the virus’s lasting effects have caused her to still be in pain, and she has also lost vision in one of her eyes. In the process of her husband and son caring for her, they lost their jobs. However, she did not let this stop her.

After Ana’s encounter with the virus, it motivated her to help her community. Daily, Ana gathers food from a local non-profit called Tenants and Workers United and delivers it to high-risk individuals and those in need. She was terrified to go to the hospital when she contracted COVID-19, so it is also essential to share facts and not fear while encouraging others to get tested. People often ask if she is getting paid for her act of kindness, but it is 100% from her heart.?

Ana’s actions are such an inspiration to us at Easterns Automotive Group and Fox 5 DC, so we surprised her with a deluxe spa basket, a warm shoulder throw, and a $200 gift card to Safeway.

If you know someone in the DC, Maryland, and Virginia area that goes above and beyond the call and is worthy of being recognized,?Click here?to nominate them.

Helping Hands – Surprise Food Pantry

Community,

Once the pandemic brought the world to a complete stop, it ended jobs for many across the globe. Tri Trinh?s photo booth business took a big hit once there was a halt to events. He lost his source of income and gained lots of free time during the pandemic. With more time on his hands, he wanted to find ways to give back to the community with very little money.?

It began with a coat drive. On the first three Saturdays of October, Tri gave away hundreds of coats to anyone in need. The idea for a food pantry sparked when he noticed others began to put canned goods in community libraries instead of books. Tri opened DC?s first 24/7 food pantry outside of Bluebird Sky Yoga. Understanding that, like himself, there are many newly unemployed people and don?t know where to go, he wanted to be that helping hand for those in this time of need without judgment. The food pantry has a take what you need set up, and he visits the pantry throughout the day to make sure the shelves are stocked.?

He has since launched a non-profit called Kindness DC and hopes to open more 24/7 food pantries across the district. Partnered with ABC 7?s Helping Hands, Easterns Automotive?s Joel Bassam was able to share our surprise donation of $1500 to continue his mission.?

“This is awesome! This will help us fill the pantry for three full weeks,” Trinh said.?

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