Arlington Neighborhood Villages
Neighbors Helping Neighbors Age In Place
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Surveys indicate that close to 90 percent of persons over the age of 65 would like to continue to live in their own homes as they age. As the daily challenges of living grow, however, seniors often need more support to remain safely and independently at home. Activities that used to be simple – driving, getting groceries, changing a light bulb or smoke detector battery – become tricky, or even hazardous, to do alone. In addition, as seniors age they may lose their ability to drive, careers wind down, friends and family move away, and their worlds become smaller. The resulting social isolation affects both physical and mental health and is a risk factor for a variety of diseases. These issues are even more challenging for lower income seniors. Consequently, Arlington’s growing senior population who wish to remain in their homes need services and programs that allow them to do so safely and independently, while alleviating social isolation.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Transportation and other support
ANV Volunteers provide services to our members, driving them to medical appointments, grocery shopping, pharmacy, bank, post office and ANV-sponsored outings; delivering food and medications; helping with home chores (changing light bulbs and smoke alarm batteries) and technology (Zoom training, TV and computer setup). Our volunteers provide decluttering (home organizing) help.
Community engagement
Beyond direct services, ANV brings our community together with hundreds of opportunities to engage socially each year. From weekly "coffee and conversations," to dine-arounds at local restaurants, happy hours, sports and exercise, special interest groups, and informative and engaging field trips, ANV members and volunteers enjoy many hours of social time together. And every ride to a medical appointment is another opportunity for members and volunteers to connect. We provide walking buddies and friendly visitors. All of these activities help to combat social isolation often experienced by seniors. During the Covid-19 pandemic, social events moved to virtual gatherings with great success, and several continue on that basis while most have moved back to in person. In-person events include holiday parties, picnics, tai chi, and bocce games in neighborhood parks.
Enhancing health and wellness
ANV provides a popular twice-weekly S.A.I.L. (Stay Active and Independent for Life) fall prevention class that covers cardio, stretching, strength, and balance exercises, both in person and via Zoom. We cover health and wellness issues frequently in our weekly "Coffee and Conversation" meetings, and ANV hosts an annual Senior Health Fair.
Where we work
Awards
Great Nonprofit 2023
Great Nonprofits
Distinguished County Service Award 2022
Arlington County
Covid Heroes Award 2022
Arlington County
Affiliations & memberships
Great Nonprofits 2023
External reviews
Photos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of volunteers
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Seniors
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
Volunteers for ANV are vetted with background checks and undergo training. All prospective drivers undergo a driving record check and must show proof of auto insurance.
Hours of volunteer service
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Seniors
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
This metric represents the number of hours donated by ANV volunteers to provide services to members. The data are end of year totals. Downturn in 2020-21 due to pandemic precautions.
Total number of organization members
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Seniors
Type of Metric
Other - describing something else
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
2023: Members are ages 58-102; 43% age 80 or older; 72% are female; 61% live alone; 14% have diverse backgrounds; 31% use mobility device or have hearing/eye loss. 35% are lower income.
Service requests fulfilled
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Seniors
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
43% of all service requests are for transportation. 97% of all service requests are fulfilled. Data are end of year totals.
Goals & Strategy
Reports and documents
Download strategic planLearn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
The ANV MISSION is to enable seniors to continue living safely, independently, and with an enhanced quality of life in their own homes and communities as they age by providing access to support services and social programs.
Our VISION is that over the next five years, Arlington Neighborhood Village will become an essential piece of the social safety net for seniors in Arlington, providing volunteer services for older adults from all segments of the community and collaborating with the County and senior-serving organizations to make aging in place possible for those who want it. Our STRATEGIC GOALS are:
1. To be a welcoming inclusive village that helps address the challenges of aging in place.
2. To build a diverse membership, volunteer corps, staff, and board that reflect Arlington's demographics.
3. To deliver rewarding, interesting volunteer opportunities to a robust, engaged, multi-generational volunteer corps that is large enough to meet the demands of increasing membership.
4. To build the capacity, policies, and structures to enable the organization to achieve its strategic vision.
5. To cultivate diversified portfolio of sustainable funding to support ANV's growth.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
ANV is in its 10th year of operation and has seen a steady rise in its membership, volunteer corps, fundraising, and support for lower income seniors. It is recognized as an important part of the senior safety net in Arlington.
ANV adopted a 5-year strategic plan in 2022 to guide us in fulfilling our mission and strategic goals, each with action plans. We are initially emphasizing two goals: expanding membership to serve more older adults in Arlington (particularly a more diverse membership), and building organizational capacity and infrastructure to be able to accommodate our growth. To achieve expanded membership, we are reaching out to underserved communities via our Arlington Community Ambassadors Program and our partnerships with senior housing and other local entities. To build capacity, we are increasing the number of staff, volunteers, and consultants; moving to a larger office space; and adopting a new database system to allow more effective matching of requests for assistance with volunteers.
ANV has developed strong partnerships with other senior serving non-profits and Arlington County offices, resulting in a steady stream of new, lower income members.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
ANV is in a unique position to be able to provide both direct support and the human connection to make aging in place in Arlington possible. A volunteer-driven operation, ANV has a clear view of the needs of seniors, and working with our partners, can provide more seniors in Arlington with the support, information, and community they need to age in place safely. A talented and experienced staff are responsible for ANV management , building community relationships and reaching deeper into the Arlington community to offer services to more older adults. Our Member Services Director brings on new members, ensures that service requests are fulfilled, and provides emotional and social support to members in need. ANV's volunteer coordinator oversees a growing corps of trained and vetted volunteers ready to help. Each month, more members and volunteers join ANV.
ANV understands the extra challenges that seniors face if on a limited income. From the very beginning, ANV has been committed to not turning anyone away for inability to pay our membership fee of $500 annually. The pandemic caused us to build upon our previous success of supporting low-income seniors in-need and at-risk. Currently, we provide significantly discounted fees based on a sliding income scale to more than one-third of our membership.
Securing dedicated funding for the Financial Aid Fund is a continuous effort so that ANV can support more low-to-moderate income seniors via subsidized memberships. Our fundraising efforts include seeking gifts and grants from individuals, foundations, and corporations. ANV's growing success in obtaining philanthropic grants reflects the community's recognition of ANV's contribution to the health and well-being of seniors. In 2022, we sponsored a webinar on legacy planning to introduce our members to ways to leave legacy gifts to ANV. That same year ANV received its first legacy gift. In addition, we are becoming more closely engaged with corporate Arlington, making ANV more widely known by becoming a member of the Arlington Chamber of Commerce in 2021. ANV is working to build a diversified portfolio of sustainable funding that includes not only donations and grants but also legacy gifts and support from the county's business/corporate sector.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
ANV is a rapidly growing village. Membership has grown from 205 at end of 2017 to almost 400 at the end of 2023. ANV's has over 400 registered and vetted volunteers, of whom 240 are active volunteers, performing services during the latest year. ANV is a leader among senior villages in welcoming and supporting members with low income, providing 35% of our members with discounted memberships. Nationwide, surveys show that only 10 to 15% of village members are lower income.
In 2023, ANV volunteers fulfilled over 4,000 service requests. Volunteers contributed 11,824 hours and drove over 43,000 miles on behalf of our members. The number attending our events was over 5,000. These data are all on an upward trend. Volunteer training has been moved online, and the process of onboarding volunteers has been made more efficient.
Requests in 2023 for transportation were 43 percent of all requests. About one-third of requests involved errands for groceries, prescription pick-up, or food delivery from the Arlington Food Assistance Center (AFAC). Other services performed included home chores/maintenance; technology support, friendly visitors and phone buddies.
ANV's annual fall Financial Aid Fundraising Campaigns in 2020 through 2023 greatly surpassed our goals, raising almost $30,000 in 2020 to permit ANV to support more lower-income, at-risk and in-need seniors. In 2021, we raised $40,000; in 2022, we raised about $50,000; and in 2023, the campaign raised over $60,000.
A generous legacy gift received from a member's estate in 2022 and 2023 allows ANV to make critical investments in staffing and infrastructure and accelerate our growth.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We act on the feedback we receive, We share the feedback we received with the people we serve, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, Participate in community meetings
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
older adults have difficulty with online surveys
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Arlington Neighborhood Villages
Board of directorsas of 02/22/2024
Larry Padberg
Larry Padberg
Cheryl Beversdorf
John Richardson
Cathy Turner
Connie Sorrentino
Mary Beth Chambers
Christine Dolan
Audrey Kremer
Sara Pappa
Susan Wallace
Marquan Jackson
Anthony Nunez
Naddia Williams
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? No -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 09/06/2023GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.