Community partnerships with MCCH, Best Buddies and others make law firm more than just a place to work

Lori Swim has led advertising and marketing for Shulman Rogers for 25-as well as decades. It is a job she plainly enjoys. But she will conveniently explain to you that she loves encouraging lawyers and workers across the legislation firm just take component in charity and volunteer plans in the communities where by they operate and reside.

“A ton of our lawyers and workers are associated in group outreach,” Swim shared. “That’s usually been, secretly, my favourite aspect of my occupation — currently being ready to do that in addition to internet marketing our legal providers.”

Despite the fact that Shulman Rogers now has a staff members of additional than 150 services consumers nationwide gives dozens of observe regions supported by approximately 100 legal professionals, several with big agency pedigrees and has offices and amenities in the District of Columbia, Maryland and Northern Virginia, it carries on to concentration on differentiating itself from the big “K Street” procedures by currently being part of communities across the metropolitan Washington area.

A powerful piece of that is in Shulman Rogers’ DNA, Swim explained.

“It’s usually been a component of the material of the agency. Founders Larry Shulman and Don Rogers were extremely involved in local community,” she explained. “Larry founded the automotive trades basis and development trades basis in Montgomery County. Don started the EagleBank Basis and served as its leader for lots of a long time.”

Nowadays, the Local community Outreach Committee aids take care of packages that help dozens of charitable businesses, nonprofits and foundations across the DMV, like the Montgomery County Coalition for the Homeless.

Partnering to rid homelessness in Montgomery County

The regulation firm’s involvement with MCCH goes back again almost two a long time. “One of the good reasons that we appreciate doing the job with MCCH so substantially is mainly because they previously have plans in location that get the job done incredibly properly to support users of the neighborhood,” Swim mentioned.

Around the previous 10 years, law firm Michael Lichtenstein served on the MCCH Board, the last 3 years serving as board chairman. The agency has partnered with MCCH on a assortment of initiatives, from aiding acquire household merchandise for transfer-in kits and amassing food stuff for Thanksgiving dinners to regularly serving foods at the coalition’s men’s shelter, which can residence 200 adult men.

“We have some amazing associates, like Shulman Rogers, that know that we can not do it by ourselves. We really are performing this jointly,” mentioned Lynn Davey Rose, interim director for advancement and local community partnerships. “They have a function we have a function, and due to the fact we’re performing alongside one another, 306 people in 2022 exited shelter and went into a steady and lasting property.”

Corporations like Shulman Rogers have and go on to be important to MCCH tackling its mission, Rose reported.

“The communities’ piece of ending homelessness is very considerable,” Rose reported, incorporating that businesses and companies supply 20% to 25% of the economic assist for the 32-yr-old MCCH’s functions.

“If we didn’t have partners like Shulman Rogers, we pretty much could not end homelessness the way we know it should really be done to be successful,” she said.

These days, Montgomery County has about 577 folks suffering from homelessness, according to MCCH info. “That is not a ton of persons for 1.2 million to consider and treatment about,” Rose stated.

The coalition has been a portion of a 5-calendar year, 34% lessen in the variety of people today dealing with homelessness in the county, she explained. “But here’s what the obstacle is: It’s not getting basically any simpler to stay in your home. It is having more durable each calendar year to continue to be in your house.”

The absence of affordable housing significantly tends to make ending homelessness a obstacle locally. Furthermore, it’s a little bit of an invisible dilemma, Rose stated. “Because people today are bulking up. If we practically seemed at the range of men and women that are housing insecure, that would be a massive number.”

For instance, a room that rented for $500 five several years back, these days rents for more than two times that usually, at $1,100, she said. “We’re not essentially possessing results at helping the greater local community have acceptable housing costs.”

Furnishing options for group involvement for all

For Shulman Rogers, continually wanting at how the regulation firm can enable throughout the area is the focus of its Group Outreach Committee, which has 18 associates. It is why the committee constantly operates to support extensive-time partners like MCCH but to also search for new alternatives also.

“Our target for any 12 months is to truly serve as many different communities as we can,” Swim mentioned. “And we try to present an avenue for everybody who needs to help to assistance.”