Homelessness rose 14% in Arlington County in between 2023 and 2024, according to a recent report by regional leaders. A D.C. nonprofit has now expanded to the area to help.
Central Union Mission has been serving those in need since 1884. The 140-year-old organization opened its south Arlington location on Tuesday, at 5401 7th Road S.
Mission: NOVA provides food and clothing as well as wraparound services, including job training and placement, health clinics and English as a second language classes.
“It’s all those things that help individuals and families to live healthy lives and to lift themselves out of poverty,” said Joseph Mettimano, president and CEO of Central Union Mission.
Mettimano said they chose this location because it’s near Bailey’s Crossroads, a neighborhood experiencing higher than average levels of poverty, and is easily accessible by public transportation.
“We looked as far west as Loudoun County. We looked in Fairfax. We looked in Alexandria. We looked in the Route 1 Corridor, as far south as Woodbridge, and there were a few things that really drove this decision. The first was we wanted to plant ourselves in the community that we wanted to serve,” explained Mettimano.
He also said the organization wanted to ensure they weren’t duplicating services that were already being provided.
“We wanted to be in a community that still had unserved needs. So that was really important to us,” he said.
Central Union Mission also has a men’s shelter near Union Station in D.C., a comprehensive family resource center in Northeast, transitional housing in Southeast, and a summer ministry camp in Brookeville, Maryland.
Service hours at Mission: NOVA are Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Food distribution is on Tuesdays and Fridays from noon to 3 p.m.
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