For 18 years, First Grace Community Alliance (FGCA) has been working with and for people in need, especially women and children, by meeting food, housing, and other emergency needs, while simultaneously challenging systemic poverty in the greater New Orleans area.

Our two main programs are: Hagar's House and Project Ishmael. Hagar's House serves as a sanctuary for women, children, and trans and gender-nonconforming folks, and provides open and empowering residential community, resource coordination, and a safe space to transition into sustainable housing. Project Ishmael is a pro bono immigration legal program for children that seeks to meet some of the immigration legal needs of children in New Orleans through direct representation and education, coordinate with volunteer attorneys to help meet the diverse legal needs of women and children who currently live in Hagar's House, and challenge systemic injustices that allow children and their families to be separated, harassed, deported, or incarcerated based on skin color or immigration status.

We are thrilled to be back as an official charity partner for the 2026 Crescent City Classic's Run For It program. We have beat our $10,000 fundraising goal in our first two years as a charity partner, and we hope we can count on you to help us reach our 2026 fundraising goal of $20,000! Each dollar raised by FGCA's Run For It team goes directly to funding Hagar's House and Project Ishmael. At Hagar's House, $500-600 pays for 1 month of healthy groceries for our residents. At Project Ishmael, $230 provides a week of one-on-one resource assistance to families and youth seeking holistic resource referrals, from legal aid to healthcare and education. Thank you for your time, your donations, and your commitment to this incredible work!

For questions about participating in Run For It in support of FGCA, please contact Erin Hebert, FGCA Board member, at erin.hebert919@gmail.com and/or Gaby Abuchaibe, FGCA's 2025 CCC Volunteer Coordinator at gaby@fgcanola.org.