Partnering for Sustainability and Community Impact
Mattresses from a recent hotel delivery at A Wider Circle’s satellite warehouse.
The Call that Changed Everything
“…they sought a nonprofit that could make use of more than 250 rooms’ worth of beds, dressers, love seats, and other furniture…”
In the fall of 2022, A Wider Circle received a call from the offices of Host Hotels & Resorts. They were preparing for a major renovation of The Westin Georgetown, Washington D.C., and, as part of the company’s broader sustainability efforts, they sought a nonprofit that could make use of the more than 250 rooms’ worth of beds, dressers, love seats, and other furniture to be replaced.
Host had already reached out to a few other organizations, but none had the capacity to take on such a large donation — over 5,000 pieces of furniture in total. Most of it was in good condition, and they did not want to see it end up in a landfill.
Thankfully, A Wider Circle said yes. Beginning in November 2022, we began receiving furniture deliveries from Host — up to 40 hotel rooms per week from both The Westin Georgetown, Washington D.C. and an even larger renovation project at the Washington Marriott at Metro Center. By April 2023, Host Hotels & Resorts had delivered 16,211 pieces of furniture, representing 707 rooms from the two hotels.
Meeting the Need with Innovation
“The problem was not one of demand, but logistics.”
As we began accepting these deliveries, we had to get creative — more furniture was coming in than we could distribute in a typical week, and storage space in our satellite warehouse was filling up fast.
The problem was not one of demand, but logistics. Even with our Center for Community Service running at full capacity, the amount of requests for furniture we receive each week exceeds the number of furniture appointments we’re able to hold.
The solution? In December 2022, we launched monthly Community Connection events, inviting neighbors seeking furniture to our satellite warehouse (now known as our Community Connections Center) to pick up beds and other furniture from our surplus inventory. These events also provided an opportunity to invite other local service providers to offer attendees fresh groceries, clothing, and information on critical services. Over the years, partners like Manna Food Center, So What Else, Nourishing Bethesda, Montgomery County Infant and Toddler’s Program, and Worksource Montgomery have joined us at these events.
At Community Connection events, neighbors ‘shop’ for smaller items, while staff and volunteers load their vehicles with furniture.
Flora’s Story — From Seeking Help to Giving Back
‘It’s difficult to see loved ones without food, shelter, clothing, furniture, money…‘
Flora* attended her first Community Connection event in the summer of 2023. Born in DC to parents who immigrated from El Salvador, her family often struggled to get by:
“Our situation eventually improved, but in 2020, when the pandemic hit, my parents and I lost our full-time jobs. I then began seeing friends and family lose employment, as well, and things began to go downhill. It’s difficult to see loved ones without food, shelter, clothing, furniture, money… It was then that I decided to work with our church, and I began my search for assistance from organizations like A Wider Circle.”
After receiving the beds her family needed, Flora wanted to help others in her community — “The need for assistance is huge in the Hispanic community, especially the elderly and children. They are not only vulnerable, but most of the time, they don’t speak English, so communicating their needs is difficult. Most of them don’t drive and don’t have transportation either, and if they do have a job, the pay is only enough to cover a portion of the rent. Furniture such as beds and mattresses, and basic clothing such as socks and winter clothing are extremely necessary among these people, but unfortunately, no one can afford to spend $100-$1000 on these items.” Since then, Flora has helped more than 10 families receive much-needed beds and other items from Community Connection events.
Scaling Up: New Partnerships, New Possibilities
“In 2024, we received and redistributed more than 21,000 pieces of furniture from 15 such projects.”
A Wider Circle has continued working with Host Hotels & Resorts beyond the first two hotel projects in 2023. In 2024, as renovations began at the Grand Hyatt Washington, we received and redistributed another 16,000 pieces of furniture from its 903 hotel rooms. And this year, we’re partnering again on two more hotel projects — furniture deliveries from 519 rooms at the Hyatt Regency Reston and 840 rooms at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill are already underway and slated for completion in June and November, respectively.
We’ve also established new partnerships for renovation projects at other hotels, universities, apartment buildings, and more. In 2024, we received and redistributed more than 21,000 pieces of furniture from 15 such projects.
This growing influx of donations has created another ripple effect: resource sharing. Not only are we able to serve more neighbors directly through Community Connection events, but we’ve also been able to provide surplus inventory to other local organizations serving those in need. In 2024, we shared 1,463 pieces of furniture with 12 nonprofit partners, including Homes Not Borders, Community Forklift, Habitat for Humanity, and more.
These partnerships haven’t just allowed us to serve more neighbors — they’ve helped create a sustainable circular economy that strengthens the fabric of our entire community. As we continue this vital work, we remain grateful for the generosity of our partners and the resilience of the neighbors we serve.
*Name changed to protect privacy
Our programming is only possible because of support from neighbors like you.
