Fundraiser of the Year

WEAVE provides holistic services including legal support and counseling to survivors of domestic 
violence. The organization reaches across communities by employing a bilingual staff and targeting efforts to D.C.'s gay and lesbian population, as well.

Its troubles began in 2008, when the District of Columbia announced it would provide the organization $200,000 less than it had requested. WEAVE drew on savings and made cost-cutting efforts, bracing against the first blows of the economic downturn. It initially cut four staff positions, then cut more; it outsourced accounting, gave up half its main office space and pinched every possible penny.