A-SPAN at work in Arlington. (Photo courtesy A-SPAN.)

Name: Arlington Street People's Assistance Network (A-SPAN)

Motto: Helping the Homeless in Arlington

Members: A-SPAN has 18 full-time staff members and more than 1,000 volunteers, according to executive director Kathy Sibert.

Agenda: "Really what A-SPAN does is provide services for Arlington’s homeless. Our mission is to really bring them in from the streets," Sibert says. 

The group provides a wide range of services for homeless people, including handing out brown bag meals once a day at two locations in Arlington and running a drop-in center in Shirlington where homeless people can take showers, stock up on necessities, and get counseling. A-SPAN is also in charge of the emergency shelter that operates from November to March to provide homeless people with a place to sleep in colder months.

Founded: 1991

Why they formed: Founder and former director Lora Rinker started handing out meals to homeless people from her back porch in 1991. "She was just very conscious of the issues involving the homeless, of the people who were sleeping at the library, and the parks," Sibert says of Rinker. "So she really started this in response to that."

How it's going: A-SPAN now serves about 1,800 people per year, and is always looking to expand its programs. It just received funding to add three more people to its housing program for chronically homeless individuals, and also re-housed more than 89 families and individuals under a "rapid re-housing" program funded through the federal stimulus program.

What's next: The group is in heavy fund-raising mode — about 40 percent of its funding comes from donations — and is gearing up to hold its series of mini-walks leading up to the larger Fannie Mae Help the Homeless Walkathon in D.C. The group will hold its walk Nov. 6, starting from the site of the emergency shelter in Courthouse and ending with a reception at Whitlow's on Wilson.

A-SPAN is also crossing its fingers for an eventual year-round emergency shelter in Arlington. The county will have to find a new site for the emergency shelter over the next few years, and the county board has said it is looking for a path forward to providing a year-round service, according to Sibert.