Blog

A special thanks to Wendy, Mark Oden, Meredith, Mike, Kristen, Cassie and Kelly! May the love and generosity you showed to strangers come back to you over and over again. I spent every penny collected on the last drop off we will do for now. Thanks to those of you who reached out to help.Read more

I wanted to share with all of you what happened since yesterday that is pretty amazing…Some sunshine amidst all this gloom. Mike Shonholz sent me a text about 5:30 yesterday wanting to know how he could help with efforts assisting others in need. After a few texts and a quick call we had a plan.Read more

If you are looking for a random act, please consider your local schools. There are many children and families that depend on going to school in order to eat each day. Not just breakfast and lunch, but food is also sent home by these programs to feed other family members. Loudoun County has opened schoolsRead more

I went into the nail salon where I’m a ‘regular’ for a manicure and happened to see one of my children’s former teachers. I’ve known this woman as a teacher and also as an acquaintance. We’ve run into each other socially over the years and we have some friends in common. Last March, she sufferedRead more

We have a hypothermia shelter with only 12 beds in Falls Church. My partner and I pick up a volunteer shift each month. Usually we are there 5 – 11:45 to check people in, dish up dinner & play cards, chat, etc. and giving things would be weird. This month he picked up an overnightRead more

I passed over the random acts of kindness bill to the lady who comes and cleans our floor and I got a hug which I was not expecting. That gesture and the smile from her was amazing. Please keep up the good work. Happy Holidays to you and the ARG team! -an ARG ClientRead more

I had to go to traffic court today for an expired registration. After debuting in my first court appearance and getting out with no charges, I was walking back to the parking garage and encountered a frazzled young mom carrying a hefty 3 year old. She put him down and he started wailing so IRead more

November 27, 2019 “Mission accomplished! What a day and experience! With only a couple of deliveries left for today, we managed to cook and personally deliver meals to several dozen families. Some we found out were added to our list and were not aware the school had selected them. I can’t put into words theirRead more

“I was in the grocery store this weekend and saw an elderly gentleman navigating the aisles in an electric wheelchair. I gave him my RAK $20 and wished him a happy Thanksgiving.  He didn’t have much to say but I hope I made his day.” -Linda MechlinRead more

“About a month ago I was at the local Peets Coffee shop and was waiting for my Café Latte, and a group of young teenagers came in, they looked just like my girls.  I paid it forward and asked the barista to cover their drinks and gave her my ARG RAK $20. Thank you, ARG,Read more

“On Friday night my wife and I went out to drop our daughter in Rockville at her cousin’s house and decided to find a place to eat dinner. We went over to Stella Barra, a pizza restaurant nearby. We sat at the corner of the bar as the wait for a table was very long.Read more

“My sister and I went to Outback last night and I saw a family with a really happy baby.  I’m not sure why this made me choose this family but I paid for $20 of their bill.” -Alysia NguyenRead more

“We have a neighbor around the corner from us who is in his mid-sixties and has fallen on difficult times.  He’s in-between jobs and working with AARP on doing a resume refresh as well as MS Office training to help make him a better job candidate. When things are particularly challenging he does odd jobsRead more

“I had the opportunity to talk with an incredible Uber driver not that long ago. He was positive and engaging, and though I usually like to ride in silence I found I couldn’t help but respond when he started a conversation. Having come from Ethiopia he talked about the opportunities he was pursuing, and hisRead more

I was having lunch with a friend at Silver Diner, and as we were getting ready to pay, I noticed a young couple with a baby in a carrier at the table across from us. Without thinking much about it, I got up and walked over to them with my $20 and attached “Random ActsRead more

ARG recently rebranded this summer, rendering hundreds of new mugs glasses that we had ordered with the old logo obsolete. Enter Kimberely Evans, who called around to her contacts to see who could use them. Area YMCAs often provide after school care for less privileged working families and parents out looking for jobs.  Kimberly droveRead more

My RAK story is not an exciting one but it is dear to me.  I often visit Chesapeake Beach, MD , there is a little store there that hires young kids to help you take your groceries to the car and load them.  It’s like the good ole days. Now keep in mind these kidsRead more

My son was back in town from California for a long weekend and we went to breakfast at a local diner. He is 22 and graduated high school in 2015. Our server came over and to start the restaurant process and he immediately recognized Jake from school. We got introduced and the two guys caughtRead more

A few friends and I were walking around Old Town Alexandria when I spotted a man in a wheelchair struggling to cross the street as he got off the bus. I asked him if he needed any assistance. He kindly asked me to help him cross the street so that he could get to hisRead more

This morning I donated breakfast for a local marketing and design organization called Red Thinking. The reason I donated to them is because, like ARG, Red Thinking values giving back to their community. Every year, the organization closes down for 24 hours straight to work exclusively on a marathon of pro bono projects. “Brand Jam”Read more

I got my 8-year-old involved in the mix here and he’s been looking for an opportunity and this weekend he found it. We were at Potbelly for lunch with his travel soccer team between tourney games this weekend and there were 2 servicemen in line in front of us. Matthew wanted to accomplish “two birds”Read more

You may not know it but most apartment complex’s pools lifeguards are young adults from countries across the world. The pool management companies bring them over, place them the group housing and schedule a few social gatherings for them… for this experience, they work at the pools and are paid a small paycheck. Most haveRead more

I was in Cava when two firefighters/EMT walked in. I immediately went to the cashier and said I would cover their meals. I also asked she not tell them who it was from. They had no idea and looked around trying to figure it out. They seemed pretty happy about it but a bit confused.Read more

I gave my $20 to my son with the instruction to treat his friends today.  He and 3 friends metroed into DC for a class at the District Architecture Center.  Afterwards, he treated them to cupcakes at the nearby Red Velvet Cupcakery.   He and his friends were delighted and wanted to THANK ARG.  They areRead more

Experience: Arlington County Election Volunteer Concierge Yesterday I used my volunteer hours to work the polls in Arlington County for the midterm elections. I felt like I was part of something bigger than myself. I always exercise my right to vote but by being the feet on the street I felt like I was directlyRead more

The Falls Church City Public Schools, in conjunction with the Special Olympics, put on a fabulous event at the GMHS track. The Little Feet Meet in The Little City had a great turnout and from what I could tell, everyone had a lot of fun. Students ran, threw, jumped and played games. The lead sponsorRead more

It was great to be able to leverage our community engagement initiative & use a few hours of time to get to the meet and do whatever the coaches needed to get done so that the meet started on time. There were approximately 100+ kids participating in 32 events from long jump, high jump, discus,Read more

One of my close friends is a teacher at Mark Twain Middle School in Alexandria. She mentioned that one of her “at risk” students who she cherished and had great potential had been jumped walking home from school. They took his backpack, stole his sneakers, and winter coat. He had been coming to school inRead more

I really enjoyed volunteering at JA Finance Park yesterday.  If anyone else is interested in volunteering, I recommend it! There were 8 people from Freddie Mac there as well, it’s part of their community service program.  And there were some retired people from the community that volunteer too.  The kids (and I) learned a lot. Read more

I believe that Dennis O’Leary, one of three Co-Chairs of the Dc Brewers Ball, said it best by highlighting a beer analogy that everyone could get behind.  When Cystic Fibrosis Foundation began 30 years ago life expectancy for a human was like a hardly filled glass of beer.  Over the years, through donations and theRead more