Program Overview
ACT for Alexandria and the City of Alexandria are partnering with nonprofit organizations to distribute grocery store gift cards to residents in need of assistance as a result of being impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. This pilot program is made possible through funding received by the City of Alexandria through the CARES Act. With assistance from selected nonprofit organizations (Community Partners), the program will run for approximately four months and provide 1,000 gift cards per month to eligible individuals and families.

ACT will award grants to selected Community Partners to purchase the gift cards from grocery stores and distribute to residents who meet the established criteria. There will also be a process for individuals, not being served by a nonprofit, to apply for the program.

There will be ongoing review with the Community Partners, ACT and the City to determine the effectiveness of the program and discuss the possibility of additional funding or resources. Community Partners will also receive a grant to provide for administrative/operations support for this program, as well as technical assistance from ACT.

Timeline of Application Process
Applications available – June 5
Info Session – June 11 at 11am - register here: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJcscu-prD0tEtfll5Wde3RODpThbmvbHHmH  
Application deadline – June 15 at 5pm
Community Partners selected – June 19
MOU/Grant Finalized – June 25

To view information about the responsibilities of the Community Partner, Selection Criteria, and Gift Card Participant Criteria, please visit the ACT for Alexandria website - https://www.actforalexandria.org/

Question Title

* 1. Organization Information

Question Title

* 2. What is your organization's operating budget?

Question Title

* 3. Based on the outlined gift card participant criteria, how many City of Alexandria based participants are you able to serve?

Question Title

* 4. Based on the outlined gift card participant criteria, please describe the client base you have served or plan to serve.

Question Title

* 5. Based on the outlined gift card participant criteria, please check the box(es) that describe the race/ethnicity of the client base you have served or plan to serve.

Question Title

* 6. Does your organization serve any of the following groups.

Question Title

* 7. Based on the outlined gift card participant criteria, in which geographic areas of the City do your clients (proposed participants) reside?

Question Title

* 8. Based on the outlined gift card participant criteria, what percentage of proposed participants are 50% AMI? (area median income - $63,000 for a family of four and $44,100 for an individual)

Question Title

* 9. How is your organization communicating and working with your clients during the COVID-19 shutdown?

Question Title

* 10. How does your organization currently track work with your client base?

Question Title

* 11. Describe your system and processes for distributing resources to your client base during the COVID-19 shutdown?

Question Title

* 12. What has been your experience purchasing and distributing gift cards to your clients?

Question Title

* 13. Describe your ability to offer services in languages other than English.

Question Title

* 14. Does your organization have the ability to support new clients (prescreened referrals from DCHS)?

T