THE SHRIVER CORPS

Inspired by The Shriver Report: A Woman’s Nation Pushes Back from the Brink, A Woman’s Nation partnered with LIFT and the Corporation for National and Community Service to launch The Shriver Corps, an anti-poverty national service program for women and their families.

Since 2014, Shriver AmeriCorps VISTA Fellows have worked with LIFT in Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, Boston and Washington, DC. helping to train volunteers and connect low income Americans with local and national programs and services designed to put them on a path to financial security.

The Shriver Corps Fellows work to further realize the vision of Maria Shriver’s father, Sargent Shriver, who ran the War on Poverty for LBJ. and implemented powerful programs like Head Start, Vista, Job Corps, Foster Grandparents and Legal Services for the Poor.

The Shriver Corps was built upon the work Maria Shriver began as First Lady of California, when she founded WeConnect, a public-private partnership now run by the California Endowment that works with organizations in underserved communities to connect families to resources — including the state’s Healthy Families Program, food stamps, energy assistance and the federal Earned Income Tax Credit, which puts money back in their pockets —money they spend on their families, their bills and out in their communities.

The Shriver Corps expanded that idea and made it national with the support of the Corporation for National and Community Service and Bank of America Charitable Foundation.

Meet the 2015 – 2016 Shriver Corps serving in Washington D.C., New York and Los Angeles. 

After a few months into the program, Julie Jimenez, a 2014 – 2015 Shriver Corps Fellow based in Los Angeles, shared her thoughts on service:

“As I reflect on my year of service as a Shriver Corps Fellow, I vividly recall the story of a single mother of 2, weathered by the challenges of poverty and the trauma of domestic violence. With few resources available, she walked into the LIFT-LA office to seek support. She faced adversity, but throughout the process of searching for services for her family, she remained resilient and persisted for a better future.

There’s still a lot of work to be done in my community, but I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to carry on his spirit and legacy. As a Shriver Corps Fellow, I pledge to continue to build better communities here in LA and beyond.”

For more information, see also:

• The Associated Press: Maria Shriver Launches Program Honoring Her Dad
• The Huffington Post: The Shriver Corps: Expanding a Culture of Serviceby Kristin Lodal & Paul Monteiro
• Introducing the Shriver Corpsby Dixie Noonan
• Reflecting on Year 1 of The Shriver Corps
• The Shriver Corps in Los Angeles: Serving in the Spirit & Legacy of Sargent Shriver
• Catherine Gold from the Washington, DC Shriver Corps on Service
• Read the full original press release here.
• Meet the 18 young people who served in the Shriver Corps in Washington D.C., New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Chicago and Los Angeles during the 2014-2105 year of service.