COVID-19 Mutual Aid Fundraiser, Ward 3
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Ward 3 Mutual Aid emerged from the citywide DC Mutual Aid Network: a vast community initiative to deliver essential groceries & hygiene products to those most impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. While Ward 3 is far from the hardest hit, nevertheless we have hundreds of elderly, disabled, and other low-income residents who urgently need our support right now. Since our hotline first went live on Monday March 23, we have made an average of 50 grocery deliveries per week to neighbors who have either lost their income or lost their usual source of food assistance as a result of closures -- and we expect this number to keep increasing. Please keep reading to learn more about the DC Mutual Aid Network, our impact in Ward 3, what your donation will cover, and how you can become part of our mutual aid family!
What is mutual aid? As service providers and city offices closed in response to COVID-19, the DC Mutual Aid Network immediately responded with localized, hygienic neighbor-to-neighbor community support. We now have volunteer teams and fundraisers based in every ward. This model of community organizing is so effective during the current pandemic because 100% of the money we raise goes to direct aid -- not to salaries or rent or any other organizational overhead. To put it simply: we are neighbors looking out for the people in need who live the closest to us, while striving together to build the foundation of a more sustainable and just system. From Bread for the City, to the Capitol Food Bank, to city social workers, to disability advocates, to churches and medical professionals, institutions across the city are increasingly depending on the DC Mutual Aid Network to provide for their clients and caseloads.
Who started the DC Mutual Aid Network? The foundation of this network predates the COVID-19 pandemic: it was built up over the past five years by Black Lives Matter, DC Peace House, Movement 4 Black Lives, Black Youth Project 100, All Out DC, Serve Your City, and many other Black-led groups around the city. Thanks to the incredible preparedness of these local Black and Brown women organizers, our first deliveries in Ward 3 were covered by the Wards 7 & 8 fundraiser. This is testament to the immense labor of love currently being undertaken by those who already carry so much: the wealthiest ward in DC was able to answer our first calls for support because Black women living in the poorest wards are looking out for the whole city.
Let's show all of DC how much #Ward3Cares. We are now calling on Ward 3 to help us fundraise not just to cover our own ward (about $2500 a week) but also to support biweekly supply runs to Wards 7 & 8 (at least $500 a week) and the two hot meal delivery programs that we sponsor. Since Ward 3 is the wealthiest ward in the city, we ask that people give as generously as possible so that we can increase the scale and frequency of the support we provide to our neighbors.
How much should I give? $50 will fund one grocery run for a vulnerable resident of Ward 3. $250 will provide groceries for an elderly couple for the next month. $500 will feed a low-income family for an entire month. $200 will cover one of our biweekly hot meal deliveries to disabled and homeless neighbors in our ward. $300 will fund the 100 hot meals that our friends at They/Them Collective (Ward 5) cook & deliver across the city every Friday.
Do you spend the money on other things besides groceries? The money you will donate will go to the following goods and services: 1. Fund free grocery deliveries to people who have been impacted the most by the virus and/or cannot leave their homes, 2. Get medical and disinfecting supplies to care workers, volunteers, and other "essential workers,” 3. Get supplies to create hygiene care packages for needy community members, 4. Procure materials to produce homemade masks for those who need them the most such as the homeless, hospital workers, nurses, doctors, grocery workers, and more, 5. Stock up on food and hygiene goods more abundantly available in Ward 3 and make bulk deliveries to other wards, 6. Help fill any other mutual aid request put out by the DC community, especially those in marginalized communities.
How are the funds managed? This is a grassroots effort, so we do not have an organizational bank account. Funds are transferred into an account with Amalgamated Bank opened by Ward 3 Mutual Aid organizer & resident Sara Swetzoff exclusively for this mutual aid effort. A small group of admins from our Ward 3 Mutual Aid team have access to the linked PayPal, Venmo, and CashApp accounts in order to reimburse grocery runners and supply shopping. As of November 2020, we have about 300 volunteers who receive our emails and donate their time & vehicles to do the grocery shopping, hotline operation, and supply deliveries. We are meticulously tracking our spending: receipts and spreadsheets of all financial transactions can be made available to any donor upon request.
Last but not least, how can you get involved? You don’t have to deliver groceries or operate the hotline to join our mutual aid family. We would love for you to join our weekly calls, help us with community outreach, and share any other ideas or feedback you have! To sign up as a Ward 3 volunteer and receive our daily email updates, please fill out this short form: bit.ly/W3MutualAid. Contact us any time at [email redacted].
Thank you for coming on this mutual aid journey with us!
with love and solidarity,
The Ward 3 Mutual Aid Team
What is mutual aid? As service providers and city offices closed in response to COVID-19, the DC Mutual Aid Network immediately responded with localized, hygienic neighbor-to-neighbor community support. We now have volunteer teams and fundraisers based in every ward. This model of community organizing is so effective during the current pandemic because 100% of the money we raise goes to direct aid -- not to salaries or rent or any other organizational overhead. To put it simply: we are neighbors looking out for the people in need who live the closest to us, while striving together to build the foundation of a more sustainable and just system. From Bread for the City, to the Capitol Food Bank, to city social workers, to disability advocates, to churches and medical professionals, institutions across the city are increasingly depending on the DC Mutual Aid Network to provide for their clients and caseloads.
Who started the DC Mutual Aid Network? The foundation of this network predates the COVID-19 pandemic: it was built up over the past five years by Black Lives Matter, DC Peace House, Movement 4 Black Lives, Black Youth Project 100, All Out DC, Serve Your City, and many other Black-led groups around the city. Thanks to the incredible preparedness of these local Black and Brown women organizers, our first deliveries in Ward 3 were covered by the Wards 7 & 8 fundraiser. This is testament to the immense labor of love currently being undertaken by those who already carry so much: the wealthiest ward in DC was able to answer our first calls for support because Black women living in the poorest wards are looking out for the whole city.
Let's show all of DC how much #Ward3Cares. We are now calling on Ward 3 to help us fundraise not just to cover our own ward (about $2500 a week) but also to support biweekly supply runs to Wards 7 & 8 (at least $500 a week) and the two hot meal delivery programs that we sponsor. Since Ward 3 is the wealthiest ward in the city, we ask that people give as generously as possible so that we can increase the scale and frequency of the support we provide to our neighbors.
How much should I give? $50 will fund one grocery run for a vulnerable resident of Ward 3. $250 will provide groceries for an elderly couple for the next month. $500 will feed a low-income family for an entire month. $200 will cover one of our biweekly hot meal deliveries to disabled and homeless neighbors in our ward. $300 will fund the 100 hot meals that our friends at They/Them Collective (Ward 5) cook & deliver across the city every Friday.
Do you spend the money on other things besides groceries? The money you will donate will go to the following goods and services: 1. Fund free grocery deliveries to people who have been impacted the most by the virus and/or cannot leave their homes, 2. Get medical and disinfecting supplies to care workers, volunteers, and other "essential workers,” 3. Get supplies to create hygiene care packages for needy community members, 4. Procure materials to produce homemade masks for those who need them the most such as the homeless, hospital workers, nurses, doctors, grocery workers, and more, 5. Stock up on food and hygiene goods more abundantly available in Ward 3 and make bulk deliveries to other wards, 6. Help fill any other mutual aid request put out by the DC community, especially those in marginalized communities.
How are the funds managed? This is a grassroots effort, so we do not have an organizational bank account. Funds are transferred into an account with Amalgamated Bank opened by Ward 3 Mutual Aid organizer & resident Sara Swetzoff exclusively for this mutual aid effort. A small group of admins from our Ward 3 Mutual Aid team have access to the linked PayPal, Venmo, and CashApp accounts in order to reimburse grocery runners and supply shopping. As of November 2020, we have about 300 volunteers who receive our emails and donate their time & vehicles to do the grocery shopping, hotline operation, and supply deliveries. We are meticulously tracking our spending: receipts and spreadsheets of all financial transactions can be made available to any donor upon request.
Last but not least, how can you get involved? You don’t have to deliver groceries or operate the hotline to join our mutual aid family. We would love for you to join our weekly calls, help us with community outreach, and share any other ideas or feedback you have! To sign up as a Ward 3 volunteer and receive our daily email updates, please fill out this short form: bit.ly/W3MutualAid. Contact us any time at [email redacted].
Thank you for coming on this mutual aid journey with us!
with love and solidarity,
The Ward 3 Mutual Aid Team
Fundraising team: Ward 3 Mutual Aid Network (2)
Sara Swetzoff
Organizer
Washington D.C., DC
Ward Mutual Aid
Beneficiary
Mutual Aid Ward 3
Team member
