Committee for Helping Others

Simple, loving charity for the needy of Vienna, Oakton, Dunn Loring, and Merrifield

CHO AND THE CORONAVIRUS

We wanted to give you an update on what CHO is doing in light of the coronavirus situation. CHO volunteers are still working to help our neighbors during this difficult period. Of course, our primary concern is the health and safety of our clients and volunteers, so the steps we are taking is designed with that in mind.

Our Food Closet is closed to protect our volunteers and clients; we are providing food cards to those who need help. Please send any food cards to CHO, PO Box 233, Vienna VA 22183.

Our Clothes Closet is closed, but we will respond to emergency needs, for example, the loss of clothing in a fire. We cannot respond to routine requests for clothing.

Our Emergency Services Team continues to provide financial assistance in emergency situations and requests are increasing. We are working closely with Fairfax County and other social service agencies. A number of utilities, such as Dominion Energy, Washington Gas, and Northern Virginia Electric have suspended disconnections, generally until the end of April, which should help us tremendously in the short term. However, we are receiving many more calls from restaurant and service workers who have been laid off.

Meals on Wheels serves adults age 60 or over or people with disabilities who cannot shop and prepare their own meals. CHO provides volunteer drivers to the program run by the Fairfax County Agency on Aging. The Meals on Wheels program is currently being handled by the Fairfax team, and meals will only be delivered once a week, instead of three. The program normally requires an assessment to determine eligibility; if you know anyone 60 or over who needs this help, suggest that they call 703 324-5409.

Our Furniture program is suspended until the health authorities tell us it’s safe to work in groups. When it is safe, our volunteers will transfer our inventory from our old warehouse to our new, much smaller, storage facility, and we will resume scheduling pickups.

Your Help: We can certainly use your support at this time. We have already seen increased calls to our emergency services team and we expect more over the next few months. A number of folks have contacted us about making donations. Financial assistance is always welcome, and checks (or food cards) can be sent to CHO, PO Box 233, Vienna VA 22183 or you can donate financially online:

Donate Online Now!
Or, send a check (payable to CHO) to CHO, P.O. Box 233, Vienna VA 22183.

Please stay safe, wash your hands and take good care of your families during these trying times.

CHO is an all-volunteer organization that helps by providing:

Emergency financial assistance
Emergency food aid
Clothing
Furniture
Meals on Wheels
Transportation.

The links on the menu bar take you to descriptions of each of these services, as well as to information on our organization and, most important, on how you can help.