Gracing Spaces volunteers in the back of the one truck they own.
For a person without a residence, it’s a process to finally get a place to call home and part of that process includes getting furniture. That’s where “Gracing Spaces,” comes into play with donated beds, chairs, couches, clothes and more.
“The demand is just enormous,” said Dorothy Sorrell, the secretary of Gracing Spaces, a non-profit in Burke. From January 2024 to June, she said they’ve gotten 229 social worker requests to help 640 people that needed furniture and other living materials for their new residences totaling $111,000.
Wall decorations brighten the interior of a new residence.
Gracing Spaces is an all-volunteer nonprofit that has been furnishing homes for people leaving homelessness for more than 20 years. This Burke organization works with social workers of more than 20 Fairfax County agencies and other nonprofits to provide furniture, household items, and children's clothing and toys. As people are finally able to be housed, they need these items as they struggle to overcome homelessness due to poverty, domestic violence, eviction, and loss of homes due to fire and redevelopment, they said. Gracing Spaces is currently working out of public storage units and a small warehouse in Burke and welcomes volunteers to assist in these efforts.
When they began years ago, they operated out of a church basement in Clifton but after a few years, they had to move and are now operating out of a self-storage space, handing out furniture, clothes and more on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. They do “makeovers,” too, and have a donated truck to deliver when possible.
A mother and four children were the last makeover they did, but Gracing Spaces mostly interact with the social workers face to face.The furniture, clothing, cookware and other items have to be in great condition, with no stains or tears.
There are some places in Fairfax County where there is more need for a service like this and Gracing Spaces works with county supervisor’s offices or charity organizations like FACETS or Cornerstones to make the connections. The Centreville United Methodist Church is a partner as well. They rely on 60-70 volunteers as well, and since they rely entirely on donations, the only way to thank these volunteers is a celebratory dinner once a year.
People living without a home, people experiencing homelessness, are struggling all over the country.
The Big Housing Picture
Fairfax County, in coordination with the surrounding D.C. Metro area, conducted its 2024 Point-In-Time Count of individuals and families experiencing homelessness on Jan. 24, 2024 and counted 1,278 people literally homeless on that date, according to the county website. This is a decrease of 2 percent (32 people) from the 2023 Point-in-Time Count, when there were 1,310 people identified as experiencing homelessness. This highly coordinated effort provides critical data on the numbers of Fairfax County residents living in shelters, in time-limited transitional housing programs as well as those unsheltered and living on the street in the Fairfax-Falls Church community.
For more information on how to help Gracing Spaces, go to www.gracingspaces.com
