OUR HISTORY

In the 1980s and early '90s, civil wars in El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua had driven significant numbers of Central Americans to the U.S. In Washington, D.C., alone, the Latino population increased by 170% in just ten years.

 

Seeing a burgeoning population of new Central American immigrants experiencing homelessness in Adams Morgan and Columbia Heights at the time, a small group of parishioners at St. Margaret's Episcopal Church began a volunteer-led outreach program. The group started in January 1990 by serving rice and beans twice a week in the church’s social gathering room. Word quickly spread, and it wasn't long before the program reached beyond the Latinx population to all people in need.

 

One of the program’s founders was Rev. Charles W. Gilchrist (died June 1999). Gilchrist, a Harvard-trained lawyer, had made his career as an elected official in the area, including service as a Maryland state senator and for eight years as Montgomery County's chief executive. In 1986, he left his career in politics to attend seminary and become a priest in The Episcopal Church. In that role he served as assistant rector at St. Margaret’s. At its founding, the program was called "Desayuno y Dialouge" (Breakfast and Dialogue), and in 1999, it was renamed Charlie’s Place after Gilchrist.

 

Over the years, the program expanded to include social services, English as a second language classes, Spanish, music, drama, along with workshops on health care and legal-rights topics. Volunteer leadership gave way to professional staff, and some who used the program as clients put their skills to work and ultimately became employees.

 

Today, a few decades after its founding, Washington, D.C., has a housing crisis, and too many residents are one paycheck away from experiencing homelessness. Also, while the city and the nation experience economic booms and busts, Charlie’s Place steadfastly maintains a strong presence on Connecticut Avenue just north of Dupont Circle to provide for the basic needs of people experiencing homelessness in an atmosphere of community and hope.