“A commitment to help children thrive” is the “through-line for our work,” says For the Love of Children executive director Tim Payne.
“We were founded by a group of volunteers from the Church of the Savior,” Payne explains. “Rev. Gordon Cosby was the leader of that movement at the time. He was trying to find an opportunity to engage in community building here in the city in a principled way… coming out of the march in Selma and looking for a way to engage the community in DC in similar ways… one issue we could all get behind.”
Initially the organization focused on transitional housing for wards of the state and efforts to support youth in order to avoid crisis. Many years later, as the organization was in a leadership transition, FLOC chose to focus where it could have “the greatest long-term impact: in trying to help children reach grade level competency.”
Payne’s interview is TRACK 5 below
V. Spatz, T. Byrd; Tim Payne, FLOC executive director; Zakiya Lewis, ETH intern
FLOC now serves some 600 students per year, with capacity depending on volunteers. FLOC provides background materials and training to help volunteer tutors serve effectively and develop sensitivity to the needs of various age groups.
Hosts for FLOC’s Scholars in the Workplace program volunteer for periods as short as one afternoon.
7th Annual FLOC Book Festival
Saturday, November 16th
4-6 p.m. at Pepco Edison Place Gallery
Education Town Hall Forum 