Cornerstones

Together with our community, Cornerstones promotes stability, empowerment, and hope through support, advocacy, and community-building for individuals and families in need. Founded in 1970, Cornerstones is one of northern Virginia's leading anchor safety net and human services providers and community advocates. By leaning into our core values championing justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion; serving and leading with passion for mission excellence; acting with integrity; collaborating and innovating for impact; and equipment and empowering our community for success - we help thousands of families, individuals, and children annually. For more than 50 years Cornerstones has been an essential partner, delivering critical safety net and essential health and human services for low to moderate-income families, children, and individuals living in the dulles corridor region. We have the proven expertise to help mitigate the multiple economic and educational factors that put families and this region's vitality at risk. Cornerstones values its unique role as a direct service provider in the community, especially as a first responder for region-wide crises such as covid-19. However, we understand that true systemic change requires advocacy at the systems level. Cornerstones serves as a respected advisor to local, state, and national jurisdictions and policymakers. Our direct service work provides these community leaders and elected officials with a deeper understanding of how social and racial injustice is experienced first-hand by the people we serve and lends authenticity to our advocacy initiatives that include:1. Building and preserving affordable housing,2. Investing in connected and resilient children, youth, and families,3. Creating good jobs and economic security, and4. Advancing systems change to undo racial and social inequity.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 2022, Cornerstones was on the forefront of helping families deeply impacted by homelessness, food insecurity, and increased economic instability due to job loss or cut-back in available work hours caused by the pandemic. Eviction prevention/landlord and tenant outreach:recovery from the pandemic has been slow for many low-income households in the region, particularly for families in danger of homelessness prior to covid. In fy22, Cornerstones knew that the eviction moratorium end would foster a surge in the number of people at risk for eviction and homelessness. Cornerstones' eviction prevention unit works to increase the pool of affordable housing and incentivize local landlords to rent to people experiencing homelessness. Fairfax county also entrusted Cornerstones to work with area landlords to mitigate eviction challenges, oversee the lease-up county-wide of 169 emergency housing vouchers awarded by the us housing and urban development, as well as disbursement of approximately $1.8 million in cares act funding to aid 242 households. Through our eviction prevention unit's coordinated outreach efforts, we worked to ensure that:1. Tenants and landlords had a clear understanding of how to access rental assistance.2. Tenants easily accessed assistance (rent, utilities, food) to maintain their housing.3. Households facing homelessness accessed rental assistance and diversion services to avoid homelessness.4. Households experiencing homelessness secured rental assistance and housing location services to move quickly into permanent housing. 5. Households experiencing homelessness accessed rental assistance and housing location services to quickly move to permanent housing.food insecurity/ household assistance and pantry support during fiscal year 2022, food insecurity was the number one reason clients sought support from Cornerstones. Neighborhood pantry programs including our own continue to be challenged to maintain the food storage capacity needed to meet demand and withstand the volatility of the supply/distribution chain. In response to growing food insecurity in the region, a joint board and Cornerstones staff task force started developing a new food distribution and warehouse operations program that leverages partnerships with large to small nonprofits, faith, schools, and neighborhood-based pantry and feeding programs. Our new family resource empowerment enterprise (free) from hunger center, slated to open in summer 2023, will provide backbone support to fairfax and loudoun counties neighborhood-based pantry and feed programs and help streamline food rescue, acquisition and distribution, and delivery support. The center's operations will focus on creating efficiencies, removing barriers, and filling gaps for salvaging food waste from local businesses and increasing storage space, especially freezer space, to serve the increased number of families and individuals in our community facing food insecurity. With rising inflation, more and more families and individuals are turning to Cornerstones' assistance services and pantry program for assistance. Despite social distancing requirements and restrictions on in-person gathering, we provided more than 11,000 instances of service to vulnerable households in fairfax county in fy22. This included:- supplying approximately 800 households with nearly 17,500 bags of perishable, non-perishable foods, plus toiletries and diapers through our assistance services and pantry program (asapp) through monthly parking lot food distribution events- providing 73 households (229 household members) with approximately $31,000 in utility assistance.- $28,000 in snap benefits for residents to use at the market, matched by another $28,000 from Cornerstones' partner freshmatch, for nearly 740 transactions.emergency shelter and rapid re-housing:in fy22, Cornerstones continued working with fairfax county to operate a 100-bed, hotel-based quarantine, protection, isolation, and decompression (qpid) site and its regular homeless services initiatives through the embry rucker community shelter. The qpid site served as an additional emergency shelter for people diagnosed with the virus or at risk for exposure but with no safe place to stay. During this period, Cornerstones adapted ever evolving country requirements for health safety and social distancing while still providing case management for shelter guests, street outreach, offering meals and snacks, and managing a hypothermia prevention program. In fy22, the shelter served 615 program participants, including 53 households with children and 440 single adults. One hundred and three households comprised of 21 families, and 82 single adults exited to permanent housing.

Hope: hope captures Cornerstones' work as an advocate for changes in policies and systems to advance equitable reduction of poverty and end homelessness. Driving meaningful change includes engaging and amplifying the voices of our low-income neighbors and clients, increasing our advocacy impact by promoting affordable housing, encouraging community investment in the resiliency of children, youth, and families, creating good jobs and economic security, and undoing racial and social inequities in northern Virginia. Opportunity neighborhoods: fairfax county's opportunity neighborhoods initiative focuses on efforts to address disparities for children and youth in identified zip codes or "islands of disadvantage." Cornerstones facilities opportunity neighborhoods in reston and herndon (reston and on:herndon) collaborative community partnerships designed to promote success for children and youth, engages local leaders, nonprofits, and volunteers to help build stronger connections between school, neighborhoods, and community services. We also provide organizing support in low-income housing communities to help residents improve their environment and access needed services. In fy22, our opportunity neighborhood in herndon and reston recruited and trained 19 neighborhood ambassadors. These ambassadors served 1927 hours and conducted 93 engagement opportunities. More than 3130 residents were newly introduced to on programs and provided critical information on cornerstone'Cornerstones's programs and fairfax county resources. Equally important, the on team worked in partnership with fairfax county, fairfax county public schools, and supervisor walter alcorn's office to host virtual community conversations to dispel cv-19 myths, connect school social workers with parents in need, develop a safe space for young women to engage, share concerns, and seek assistance, and identify the urgent needs/discuss concerns of the community.education, influence, action: as a direct service provider, our work lends authenticity to our advocacy initiatives and provides a deeper understanding of how social and racial injustice is experienced first-hand by our neighbors. We collaborated with the Virginia interfaith center for public policy to host their "day for all people" virtual event leading into the january 2022 general assembly. A cohort of Cornerstones' staff, board, and advocacy volunteers helped plan online legislative meetings with elected officials to publicly discuss their plans for stabilizing this region's economy and pass critically needed legislation to ensure healthy, thriving, equitable northern Virginia communities. Cornerstones continues to bring its experience and voice through its leaders, volunteers, and neighbors to positions of influence with chambers of commerce in northern Virginia, reston, dulles, and loudoun, on the fairfax county affordable housing advisory council (ceo kerrie wilson is the co-chair), and through the fairfax-falls church continuum of care (vp maura williams is the chair). Cornerstones housing corporation (chc) also advocates for policies that address the root causes of poverty and, in particular, the stark lack of affordable housing in the dc region. Chc's executive vice president collaborates with peer public and private leaders in affordable housing-related committees, task forces, and working groups across northern Virginia.

Empowerment: Cornerstones unique approach to care management provides affordable housing and family-driven wrap-around services to help families and individuals regain stability after an initial crisis has passed. Our case management team connects people to life-changing resources, including an affordable housing rental program; quality childcare for low-income working parents and youth after school enrichment and steam activities; employment readiness and job coaching; and housing and homeownership counseling. Our community and neighborhood resource centers in low-income neighborhoods also offer access to these programs as well as financial education, esl, and us citizenship preparation classes. Quality, affordable rental housing and services: Cornerstones housing corporation (chc), our affiliate housing organization, currently owns and manages 106 affordable scattered-site rental homes and apartments dedicated to serving extremely low and low-income households and those leaving homelessness. During fy22, we provided affordable rental housing and case management services to 335 individuals. The majority of the families we serve are headed by a single parent in households with children under 18. More than 25% are elderly or disabled. Four households transitioned from the embry rucker community shelter, and two families living in chc units graduated from the program entirely. New housing development: with northern Virginia leading the way as one of the most expensive housing markets in the united states, addressing unmet affordable housing needs has been part of Cornerstones' mission-driven work since 1970. The Cornerstones housing corporation's (chc) affordable housing portfolio consists of 106 scattered site townhouses or condominiums and at north point apartments. Each unit is specifically designed to help residents earning half or less than the area's median income secure housing at a below-market rate. Chc residents also benefit from our integrated care management and resource services and programs. In fy22, 335 program participants were served, representing 109 households. Sixty-nine households, living in our townhomes/condominiums/or apartments, received care management support and services. Even with ongoing pandemic restrictions, seven families transitioned from living at the embry rucker community shelter into our affordable housing program while seven more families graduated successfully from the program. Notably, chc paid off two Virginia housing loans in 2022. Cornerstones housing corporation and Cornerstones also made progress on securing state and local funding and tax credits, county permits and easements, and construction planning for two affordable housing projects in fairfax, va (west ox 34 affordable units) and leesburg, va (tuscarora crossing- 180 affordable units; developed in joint partnership with wellington development, lp). Our icm strategy at each property will ensure every resident has access to resources and opportunities needed to flourish and feel connected in the new communities. Both projects are set to begin construction in 2023-24. Developmental childcare and youth enrichment: Cornerstones' laurel learning center re-opened its doors in june 2020 after putting in safety protocols to protect students and teachers. With stations for virtual school-day connection and infant through pre-school care, laurel learning center was a critical resource for families whose jobs required them to be on the job during the pandemic. Enrollment continued to increase in fy22, with laurel learning center serving 84 students including 16 preschoolers tracking on or above benchmarks in writing, knowing the alphabet and colors, and recognizing written first names for themselves and peers. The center also served 6 special education children with dedicated educational support and teachers. Similarly, the "kids and parents engage" initiative offering youth enrichment and leadership. In fy22, our youth program continued with hybrid program to meet the needs of 85 youth and 67 adults, with both classroom and online engagement opportunities focused on helping children and students overcome learning loss and social engagement skills lost because of school closures and restrictions. Connections for hope partnership/community connected sites: Cornerstones operates community centers designed to bring partner nonprofits, government, and community agencies into one space to meet the human service needs of the community collectively. During fy22, our community care management program served 223 households. One hundred eighty-two individuals connected with resources to increase job skills training and secure living-wage employment, food assistance, and education and financial literacy classes. Cornerstones' self-sufficiency employment 30-hour job s.m.a.r.t employment-readiness course helped 45 individuals complete the course and receive job skills training valuable to this region's businesses. Cornerstones' community connected sites (ccs) provided nearly 2,400 instances of quick information and referrals for residents seeking direct and indirect support services, including services navigation or community care management. We also hosted diverse programming events, including onsite food distributions in low-income communities, esl, and virtually hosted afterschool programs.