The foundation
What started as a clothing swap among friends became a promise to a city's women and children: you are not on your own.
The mission
“Empowering the lives and transforming the futures of underserved women and children.”
— The Giving Foundation for Women & Children
How it began
In 2010 I invited some girlfriends over for a clothing swap. Bring what you've outgrown, take what you love, and everything left at the end of the night goes to women who need it. We called it Girls' Night Out, and I thought that was the whole idea — one good evening.
But the pile at the end of that first night was bigger than any of us expected, and so was the feeling in the room. We did it again. And again. The swap became a gathering, the gathering became a tradition, and the tradition kept asking a bigger question: if one night could do this much, what could a real commitment do?
In 2019 we answered it, formally incorporating as The Giving Foundation for Women & Children. The name is long on purpose. It says exactly who we serve and exactly what we do — because a girl deserves to see her future named out loud.
The programs
Every program began the way the foundation did — with a need we couldn't look away from, and a room full of people who don't say can't.
Scholarships and support for young people reaching for an education their circumstances weren't going to hand them. A future is the most durable gift we know how to give.
Gifts, meals, and warmth for families during the holidays — because no child should learn too early that the season isn't for them.
Winter coats for women and children across the D.C. area. It's the simplest thing we do and one of the most immediate: warmth, handed over, no questions asked.
Meals for households facing food insecurity. A family that eats together tonight can plan for tomorrow — that's where every other kind of progress starts.
Comfort items and essentials, packed with care and delivered with dignity, for women and children starting over. A soft landing when life has been anything but.
Signature events
The clothing swap that started it all, grown into our signature benefit — an evening of generosity, laughter, and the kind of giving that feels like a celebration because it is one.
Sunshine, music, and purpose in the same afternoon. Proof that doing good doesn't have to wait for evening wear — and that a community shows up when the invitation is joyful.
Donations, event tickets, volunteering, and the latest from The Giving Foundation for Women & Children all live on the foundation's own site.