Byte Back-STRIVE Pilot Proves Concept; New Classes Starting

Samaritan Ministry and Byte Back were so pleased with the results of the pilot IT career fundamentals course that they created and offered together earlier this year that they launched a new class on June 5th and plan to hold at least four joint classes per year going forward. 

The first cohort of five students who completed both the morning training in technical IT “hard” skills given by Andrew Quilpa, Byte Back’s Site Director, and the afternoon instruction in “soft” job skills, such as negotiation and conflict resolution, taught by Antoine Johnson, Samaritan’s STRIVE Trainer, all passed their certification tests on their very first try, unlike some students who had opted to only receive technical training.

“I feel like it’s not a coincidence. The STRIVE portion seems to build a lot of resilience,” Quilpa says, adding that he hates to call the skills it teaches “soft” because they’re also “crucial,” and the students who learned them “really, really kept at it.” ...more

Empower our Neighbors in Need 2023 Begins!

With the District and DMV finally fully reopened, we’re especially excited to launch this year’s Empower our Neighbors in Need (ENN) campaign, the annual summer grass-roots push by Samaritan’s partner churches and schools to ignite engagement with homelessness and other critical challenges faced by the region's most vulnerable residents. On tap are speakers, community walks, ice cream socials, and drives to collect needed transit passes and food and hygiene supplies, among other ideas. 

In preparation to share their stories at many of the ENN events, five Samaritan alums met at the Samaritan Northwest DC office on Saturday to share ideas, have fellowship, and hone their speaking techniques with John Yahner, Samaritan's new speech coach and a former presidential speechwriter himself. 

The next day, Church of the Epiphany, DC, kicked off the 2023 campaign with a “Samaritan Sunday” featuring the inspired words of Samaritan alum Charles Hopkins and Samaritan Executive Director David Wolf, as well as a discussion group after the service. Charles credits his productive and meaningful life to Samaritan's coaching and support when we was released at the height of the pandemic after nearly 50 years in prison, and knew he was going to need help. Reformation Lutheran, Capitol Hill; St. Stephen and the Incarnation; and St. Francis, Potomac, have also lined up a former Samaritan participant to speak along with David this summer; if your congregation is thinking about inviting them too, we encourage you to reach out soon to secure an engagement. ...more

It Takes a Team: Change Agent Honorees Jane Bishop and Diane Quinn Show How It’s Done

If you know that Jane Bishop and Diane Quinn, Lead Caseworker and Employment Specialist, respectively, both float among Samaritan Ministry offices located all over the region, and that wherever they are, they each work intensively with individual participants, you might think they would never get a chance to work together. But happily for both them and the people whose lives they help transform, their roles at Samaritan keep them in constant contact. 

“It’s never just one. It’s always a collaboration,” says Bishop, referring to how many people it takes to empower a person who comes to Samaritan for help getting their life on track. “It works when it’s a collaboration."

So while both women arguably do the work of many, it seems fitting that Samaritan gave them a joint Change Agent Award earlier this year. 

Drawing on the input of colleagues, Executive Director David Wolf names Change Agents annually from among Samaritan’s leaders, staff and volunteers, citing them for going above and beyond their positions’ requirements and expectations. ...more