‘Bright Resilient Youth,’ WRAP winners in 395 Express Lanes Community Grant Program

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395 Express Lanes Community Grant Program Awards Funding to the Bright Resilient Youth Committed to Enrichment and the Washington Regional Alcohol Program

Interested organizations are encouraged to apply for next round of grants by March 31

Transurban, the Virginia Department of Transportation’s partner on the 395 Express Lanes project, today announced that the Bright Resilient Youth Committed to Enrichment (BRYCE) and the Washington Regional Alcohol Program (WRAP)’s SoberRide each received a $5,000 grant this quarter through the 395 Express Lanes Community Grant Program.

The BRYCE project is an enrichment program designed to engage young women in activities that develop their social and emotional skills. The participants learn the values of the community and give back by doing random acts of kindness as individuals and in groups. BRYCE encourages friendship, diversity, and individuality and plants the seed at an early age of the importance of education.

“The BRYCE Project was pleased to receive a grant from the 395 Express Lanes grant program,” said LaVon Curtis, Founder, BRYCE Project. “As an all-volunteer organization, these funds allow us to continue our work in providing community, leadership, and mentoring to young women as they prepare for adulthood. One of our upcoming events supported by this grant is a career event which provides young women the chance to hear real-life lessons from professional women and engage in networking.”

The WRAP is a non-profit focused on using effective education, innovative programs, and targeted advocacy to end alcohol-impaired driving and underage drinking in the Washington, D.C. metro area. It is best known for its free taxi service, SoberRide, which discourages drunk driving and has provided more than 65,000 free rides to would-be impaired drivers in the Greater Washington Area. The program is credited with keeping the area’s alcohol related traffic deaths lower than the national average.

“This 395 Express Lanes grant is helping improve safety for the region, through WRAP’s assistance to those enjoying drinks on holidays to know they have the option to get home without getting behind the wheel…we will continue to partner on four other holidays this year, due to the generous support by our sponsors including Transurban,” said Kurt Erickson, President and CEO, WRAP.

“As part of the Northern Virginia community, Transurban cares about the wellbeing and safety of the communities in which we operate and seeks opportunities to address the needs of our neighbors and community partners,” said Mike McGurk, spokesman, Transurban. “We are excited to support the BRYCE project and WRAP’s SoberRide program in their efforts to improve the wellbeing of our neighbors through the 395 Express Lanes Community Grant Program.”

The next application deadline for the 395 Express Lanes Community Grant Program is March 31, 2017. Applications are accepted and grants are awarded on a quarterly basis. Interested organizations and community members can learn more by reading the 395 Express Lanes Community Grant Program Overview and Guidelines and apply online by completing a short application at 395ExpressLanes.com/grant-application.

About the 395 Express Lanes
The 395 Express Lanes project will convert the I-395 HOV lanes to Express Lanes to provide travelers with faster, more predictable travel options. The project will extend the Express Lanes network and add a third lane along the project corridor. The 395 Express Lanes will span from Edsall Road to the vicinity of the Eads Street Interchange. The improvements will be delivered through a public-private partnership between the Virginia Department of Transportation and Transurban. For more information, please visit 395ExpressLanes.com.