Little did I know when I began volunteering with the AVLF Saturday Lawyer Program seven years ago that AVLF would become such a meaningful part of my life. (Written by guest blogger and AVLF volunteer attorney Raj Shah.)

Hello AVLF friends and family! As I prepare to run my first marathon, I’m writing to ask for your kindness and support.

Thanks to our generous friends, four families – a total of 20 children – will have a very happy holiday season.

Tyler Wright is one of the Junior Board’s few non-attorneys (he’s a forensic accountant with IAG Forensics), and he serves as Secretary for the Board. We’re lucky to have him!

Ha Pham has been volunteering at AVLF for the past several weeks. Not only has she been tremendously helpful to to Cole Thaler and the Saturday Lawyer Program, she’s made a huge impact on the lives of our clients – and she learned something about herself in the process.

Quick snapshot: Christin Camp Lumpkin. I graduated from Samford University in 1997 with a BA in English Literature, and Vanderbilt Law School in 2000 where I served as the Senior Notes Editor for the Vanderbilt Law Review. I started my career on the Corporate team at King & Spalding. After a little over five years at King & Spalding, I left to join the legal department at Global Payments Inc., which is a leading worldwide provider of payment technology services.

Thanks to these law firms who have committed to Standing with Our Neighbors:

  Ayanna Jones-Lightsy Staff Attorney, Standing with Our Neighbors Program Ayanna focuses on housing issues in the Thomasville Heights neighborhood of Atlanta. She obtained her B.A. in history from Clark Atlanta University, then worked in the field of education for the next four years. She attended Emory Law School and upon graduating worked for Georgia […]

1. A housing lawyer can make a real difference in improving a child’s school attendance and performance.

Jennifer Shelfer, an Arnall Golden Gregory associate, met Ms. Valiway on a recent Saturday morning at AVLF’s weekly legal clinic. Ms. Valiway explained that she, her five young children, and her elderly mother rented a house that had fallen into disrepair. The sink, bathtub, and toilet were so clogged that Ms. Valiway had to scoop water out and throw it outside. The HVAC was broken, and the house was sweltering. The appliances were barely operable, and most windows were nailed shut. There were holes in the bathroom walls. Roaches had the run of the house and even got inside the ancient refrigerator. The exterminator refused to come back after the landlord did not pay him.

This year’s Domestic Violence Awareness Month kept AVLF’s Safe & Stable Families Team incredibly busy, as they partnered and collaborated with various community organizations to educate the public on the dangers of domestic violence and how to assist survivors.

On October 20, AVLF honored the following award winners at the Atlanta Bar Association’s Celebrating Service Luncheon:

Safe Families Office Firm of the Year: Jones Day; Safe Families Office Volunteer of the Year: Richard G. Farnsworth, Farnsworth Law, LLC; Guardian ad Litem of the Year: Brandy Alexander, The Alexander Firm, LLC; Safe and Stable Homes Firm of the Year: PwC; Safe and Stable Homes Volunteer of the Year: John H. Rains IV of Bondurant, Mixson and Elmore