Dave is a big believer in creating innovative solutions to help out people who are most in need. To that end, he and his business partner Paul Miller, have utilized their skills as lobbyists and innovators to create philanthropic charities to assist other Americans who need a hand up, not a handout.
In 2003, Dave Wenhold, CAE, PLC, created this unique clothing drive as a way that Washington, a city full of suits, could give back something tangible to Americans who are in need of the proper attire and, in doing so, addressed the unemployment and job situation in our country.
Affording proper interview and working attire is a huge obstacle for low-income adults, the unemployed, and our at-risk youth. This need inspired Dave to create the annual Capitol PurSuit Drive: Get America Back to Work campaign! Each year, Members of Congress and their staffs partner with the American League of Lobbyists and Men’s Wearhouse to host a business clothing drive that makes an immediate difference in people’s lives. Lobbying firms, associations, D.C. companies, Members of Congress and their staffs all chip in and “give the suit off their racks.”
To date, he has collected over 51,000 pieces of men’s and women’s business attire, estimated at over $2.1 million in value, that has gone directly to people in need. His motto is that “We don’t give a hand out; we give them a hand up and the most important gift of all, hope.”
In 2005, Dave Wenhold was awarded the President’s Call to Service Award. This is the country’s highest award for citizen volunteerism in America. He earned this award for creating the program and donating thousands of hours of his own time to help fellow Americans get back to work. He was the first lobbyist ever to receive this award. Additionally, this event was so successful on Capitol Hill that Men’s Wearhouse now holds a nationwide Suit Drive to help even more Americans in need.
Hoops for Hope was created in September, 1999, with the mission of creating opportunities for at-risk kids through basketball. Paul Miller created this opportunity for lobbyists and Members of Congress to play in an annual charitable basketball game in which all proceeds and sponsorship monies are donated to multiple charities in the local D.C. area that support programs for at-risk youths. The program has expanded to beyond just a game, and now involves educational opportunities and year-round involvement with the kids.
Dave has played or coached for 12 years with his partner in the Hoops for Hope games, and the event has raised over $600,000 for these local charities and has given our at-risk youth hope for a brighter future.
At Miller/Wenhold, we have a strong belief in community and giving back. And while some politicians and regulators try to fulfill campaign promises, the Miller/Wenhold team is providing tangible, real-time solutions that give people the opportunities for work and a brighter future right now!