Softening Economy Doesn't Harden Hearts

At the request of the USO, Turner Construction corralled many of its subcontractors to build special airport lounges at Dulles and National airports for the use of returning service members and their families.

Particularly heartwarming is the contribution of Ann Hand, a jeweler in the District, who on Valentine's Day and then again at Christmas has walked the wards at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and the Bethesda Naval Medical Center, offering wounded soldiers and Marines their choice of a free piece of jewelry for the special person in their lives. Ann says the favorite is a bracelet etched with a quotation from Abraham Lincoln: "All that I am and ever hope to be, I owe to my angel mother."

This has been a turnaround year for the chronically under-managed and under-performing D.C. public schools. Much of the behind-the-scenes political and financial support for Mayor Adrian M. Fenty's effort has come from the corporate heavy-hitters at the Federal City Council. PNC Bank , J.E. Roberts Companies and Ferris, Baker Watts were among the most active, providing more than $400,000 for the consulting studies that provided the blueprint for much of structural reorganization that has just been launched by the new superintendent.

And there was Fannie Mae, which was prompted by a Post article on the dismal conditions of the athletic facilities at D.C. schools to put up $4 million for a major renovation at Ballou High School. The project included a new field, bleachers, press box, lighting bathroom and concession stands for the homecoming game against the Anacostia Indians in October.

It was much the same with Feld Entertainment (a.k.a. Ringling Bros. circus), which responded generously when it learned of funding problems at the District's performing arts program at Duke Ellington School. In addition to $100,000 worth of used theater equipment, Feld also provided $100,000 in cash for the theater tech department.

Ellington's visual arts program also gets regular support from the Dickstein Shapiro law firm, which runs an annual holiday greeting card competition for art students.

The staff of the World Bank teamed up with Microsoft, Howard University, Paradigm Service Group and Catholic University to design, build and equip resource centers in the four D.C. high schools east of the Anacostia River. The centers now provide a range of educational and social services.

On two afternoons this summer, nearly 300 volunteers from Vornado and the member firms of the Greater Washington Board of Trade cleaned and painted the West End's Francis Junior High School.

IBM donated $60,000 worth of computers loaded with educational software to pre-K programs in 25 District schools. Verizon got in the act with a grant to Turning the Page, which runs an innovative in-school program that uses cameras and photography as a way of teaching reading and writing.

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the thousands of hours of mentoring, training and support services contributed by Atlantic Media and its employees to provide life skills and college preparation for District high school students under the auspices of Urban Alliance.

One of the great mysteries is why Washington-area building contractors have to look to Pennsylvania and West Virginia for skilled workers when there are so many unemployed young men close at hand. Several years ago, Shapiro & Duncan, a mechanical systems contractor in Rockville, decided to do something about it. Working with Montgomery County schools, community colleges and other contractors, they arranged for internships and apprenticeships that have led dozens of students to good high-paying jobs.

With accounting scandals and a mortgage crisis to deal with, it's been a busy and challenging year for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac-- but not so busy or challenging that they have let up on their efforts on behalf of the homeless in the Washington region. Freddie's Hoops for the Homeless event at the Verizon Center raised $900,000 for six homeless nonprofit organizations this year. In its 25th year, Fannie Mae's Help the Homeless Walkathon -- including a 30,000-person walk on the Mall and hundreds of mini-walks schools across the region -- raised several million dollars for 175 homeless shelters and transitional housing programs in the area.