Venable Foundation, the philanthropic arm of law firm Venable LLP, is pleased to announce that it has awarded an impact grant totaling $250,000 to Kids in Need of Defense (KIND), an organization providing social and legal services to unaccompanied immigrant children in the United States. The grant was announced at the Foundation’s 40th anniversary celebration. This year’s impact funding will directly benefit the social services support for KIND’s clients residing in DC, Los Angeles, Maryland, New York, San Francisco, and Virginia.
“Unaccompanied and separated immigrant children deserve an advocate and a voice. The Foundation’s funding will directly impact thousands of children in search of safety, a new life, and a future,” said Lindsay B. Meyer, president of the Venable Foundation.
The unaccompanied immigrant and refugee children KIND serves have complex psychosocial needs stemming from trauma experienced before, during, and after their journeys to the United States. Many also require assistance with basic needs, including food, housing, and healthcare. All need help navigating the U.S. immigration and child welfare systems. KIND’s holistic approach works to ensure clients’ needs are met by complementing their legal representation with comprehensive social services.
Working across 15 field offices, social services staff partner with community providers to support more than 4,000 children each year, 50% of whom are higher-needs clients receiving individualized ongoing case management. KIND facilitates the provision of trauma-informed, linguistically appropriate, and culturally responsive support services ensuring clients’ access to resources surrounding healthcare, mental health, substance use, food and housing stability, education, English language learning, crisis support, public benefit applications, teen pregnancy and parenting support, LGBTQIA+ client support, extracurricular activities, career development, and creativity and self-expression.
“KIND is deeply honored to be selected for the Venable Foundation’s $250,000 impact grant. This grant will give thousands of unaccompanied immigrant children across the country access to critical aid and the opportunity to pursue safe and promising futures. On behalf of the children, we serve, thank you for the Venable Foundation’s generous commitment to Kids in Need of Defense,” said KIND’s regional director for social services, Jasiel Fernandez.
Robert L. Waldman, vice president of the Venable Foundation, commented, “The Foundation is proud to support an organization that protects the rights and well-being of displaced immigrant children. KIND provides its clients with important social services like essential medical care, mental healthcare, education, and crisis intervention.”
The Venable Foundation was established in 1983 to support a wide variety of charitable, civic, and cultural endeavors, and to serve public interest law needs in our communities. Grantees provide a variety of programs for the community, including out-of-school activities, arts education, academic enrichment, homeless services, transitional and supportive housing, access to food, LGBTQ+ services, college access, workforce development, environmental preservation, health-based initiatives, legal services, immigration support, and a variety of other issues affecting low-income individuals and domestic violence survivors. In 2022 alone, the Foundation awarded more than $4.2 million in grants to 427 nonprofit organizations. The Foundation is proudly funded by the partners of Venable LLP.
Venable LLP is an American Lawyer Global 100 law firm headquartered in Washington, DC that serves as primary counsel to a worldwide clientele of large and mid-sized organizations, nonprofits, high-net-worth entrepreneurs, and other individuals. With more than 850 professionals across the country, including in California, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, New York, Virginia, and Washington, DC, the firm strategically advances its clients’ objectives in the United States and around the globe. Venable advises clients on a broad range of business and regulatory law, legislative affairs, complex litigation, and the full range of intellectual property disciplines. For more information, please visit https://www.venable.com/.
