Dear Village Community:

No organization can stand still. That may be especially true for Northwest Neighbors Village (NNV) which continues to meet the changing needs of our members and supporters.

In 2019, NNV implemented a strategic plan that positioned our organization for growth. Since its adoption, we have significantly increased our membership, grown our community engagement, established NNV as a leader in the District’s Village movement, increased our budget by more than 50 percent, and responded to the needs of more older adults from different age groups, diverse cultures, incomes, and backgrounds.

We have increased our membership from 239 members in 2018 to 294 in 2023, and increased the value of NNV’s membership subsidies from $9,800 to $20,000. In 2018, our newsletters reached about 600 households; today we reach 3,500. Our budget has grown from roughly $205,000 to more than $325,000. Finally, we have played a leadership role in the creation of the DC Villages Collaborative, which brings together all 13 villages in pursuit of common interests and strengthens our collective impact.

The board knew it was time to build on the successes of our 2019 plan. Last year, with involvement from the board, members, volunteers, donors, and other interested parties, we embarked on a new strategic planning process. That process is now complete. On March 21, the Board unanimously approved a new Plan intended to guide us for the next few years, 2024 through 2028.

The new plan focuses on creating a more diverse and inclusive organization that reflects the demographics of our community, exploring new service models to support program expansion, expanding our reach to more older adults through strategic partnerships, remaining a valued leader of the DC Villages Collaborative, achieving greater recognition and visibility to attract and engage volunteers, donors, and partners, engaging in advocacy work that promotes an age-friendly city, and securing new funding sources.

We think of this plan as aspirational with goals to work toward. Making the plan a reality will take all of us working together. We encourage you to get involved with NNV as a member, donor, volunteer, or supporter to help make our community a better place for older adults.

I would like to thank the members of the Strategic Planning Committee chaired by Rosemary Marcuss, to whom we are incredibly grateful. They include Susan Crawford, Judie Fien-Helfman, Morgan Gopnik, Ed Hayes, Monica Knorr, Linda Lateana, Janean Mann, and Eda Valero-Figueroa. Special thanks to Stephanie Chong, our outstanding Executive Director who so ably staffed the Committee.

Click here to review NNV’s 2024-2028 Strategic Plan. Please don’t hesitate to let us know if you have thoughts or comments.

Best,
Gene Sofer
NNV President

P.S. The Mayor's FY25 Draft Budget has been released. It includes a one time increase for Villages. Our sincerest thanks to our Village community for advocating for continued funding. We are also very grateful to At-Large Councilmember Anita Bonds, At-Large Councilmember Christina Henderson, Ward 3 Councilmember Matt Frumin, Ward 4 Councilmember Janeese Lewis George, and AARP DC for their ongoing support! We encourage you to reach out to your councilmember to thank them, and consider testifying at the Budget Oversight Hearing on April 22nd to make sure Village funding remains as-is in the final FY25 budget. Click here to sign up.