A Conversation with The Northwest Center's Director

Earlier this month, Georgetown Right to Life had the amazing opportunity to learn more about The Northwest Center from its Executive Director Susan Gallucci, a Hoya alumna. After giving members a glimpse into her personal background with the organization—having started volunteering at the center while pursuing an undergraduate degree in psychology at Georgetown and later going on to work full-time to support its mission—Mrs. Galluci then gave an overview of the resources The Northwest Center offers. For the remainder of the evening, club members were able to ask questions about the center, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary later this year and has served over 60,000 individuals in the DC area since its inception. It was clear through the conversation that the center is more than a program; it is an uplifting community of staff, volunteers, and mothers devoted to walking with and directly serving women. A recording of the event itself can also be found at this link.

Maternity Center

Opened in 1993, one of the center’s most prominent programs is its maternity home, which provides housing and support services to new and expecting mothers who lack housing for familial, financial, or other constraining reasons. Over the last nearly three decades, it has been home to over 90 women and their babies, who are welcome to stay for up to 18 months, usually hosting about four women at any given point. As Mrs. Gallucci shared, throughout the pandemic, the sense of community within the families in the maternity home and the staff at the center has grown exponentially as they’ve relied on each other to process the whirlwind going on in the world. 

Adapting Amidst COVID-19

Although The Northwest Center was forced to pause its in-person services due to COVID precautions, the center ramped up its phone appointments in an effort to be a source of information and to keep struggling mothers connected to vital services. They quickly adapted to COVID restrictions and started a curbside service for mothers to pick up diapers and other childcare supplies, as well as began providing key information to clients on vaccines and eligibility. One silver lining of the pandemic was increased participation in both phone calls and resource pick-ups, as the flexibility made The Northwest Center more accessible for new and expectant mothers. Mrs. Gallucci was happy to share that all the women involved in the program who had babies in the spring had healthy deliveries.

What can we do?

Mrs. Gallucci urged individuals, especially students, to volunteer their time at the center and the maternity home in Adams Morgan. As a non-profit organization, The Northwest Center maintains a small yet incredibly talented staff, but is always in need of volunteers to watch the children of new moms. Mrs. Gallucci stressed the importance of how one’s unique talents can always be of use to the center, giving an example of a woman who loved cooking and was able to provide cooking lessons to the women living in the Maternity Center. Be it spontaneously cooking lasagna for the new parents we know, or proactively volunteering to babysit, she emphasized that we each can contribute our gifts in a unique, personal, and meaningful way to build a culture of life in each of our communities.

Lillian Beckwith is a Sophomore in the School of Foreign Service studying Science, Technology, and International Affairs and Spanish.

If you’re interested in volunteering at the center, please sign up here: https://northwestcenter.org/volunteer/.

The event itself can be re-watched at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJsILO66u-M.