WBAF Grant Awards Ceremony

The WBA Foundation is excited to recognize our 2025 grantees at this award ceremony and networking event. The celebration brings together members of the Washington, DC legal community and others to advance our mission of leveraging the generosity of lawyers and friends in support of nonprofits serving the legal and related needs of women and girls in the DC Metro community.

The WBA Foundation’s grant recipients are at the forefront of efforts to reach and serve some of the most vulnerable members of our community, individuals who are facing challenges ranging from homelessness to domestic violence and workplace discrimination. It is our privilege to support them through our grant-making process.

Our 2025 Grantees are:

Announcement Coming Soon!

Keynote Speaker

Alexandra Bailey is an activist and advocate for domestic violence survivors all over the country. She helped pass the first national legislation to allow for the resentencing of criminalized survivors. Alexandra is a domestic violence survivor and a former client of WBAF grantee Volare (previously NVRDC).

WBA Foundation Champion Award

We are presenting our 2025 WBA Foundation Champion Award, which recognizes a devoted Foundation champion, to Gaffar Chowdhury. Gaffar is a dedicated supporter of the Foundation whose unfaltering devotion to its mission has manifested in multiple ways over many years. Gaffar served on the WBAF Board from 2013 – 2020. During his tenure, he served on the Finance, Nominations and Strategy Planning committees and served as the Foundation’s Treasurer for two years. While serving, he freely offered and used his financial expertise to help guide the Foundation and nurture its fiscal responsibility. He also opened his home to host the Foundation’s donor appreciation events.

In addition to being an actively engaged and impactful board leader, Gaffar, repeatedly and generously has sponsored the Foundation’s Wine Tasting and Grant Awards Ceremony. He is a founding member of the WBAF’s Legacy Circle, having committed to the WBAF in his estate planning, helping to ensure the long-term financial well-being of the Foundation.

While his monetary support is critical, of equal importance is the selfless donation of his precious free time and valuable professional services to the Foundation’s Silent Auction. He has repeatedly donated an outing on his boat on the Potomac, as well as his professional financial planning services, through his company, District Wealth Strategies.

Gaffar enthusiastically uses his voice on public platforms to champion the Foundation. He is an active and unrelenting promoter of the Foundation on social media, raising the Foundation’s profile and promoting its mission, across his expansive professional and personal network.

Gaffar is the President & CEO of District Wealth Strategies, a financial planning firm, and currently serves on the Wellbeing Committee of the Women’s Bar Association of D.C., on the D.C. Bar’s Board of Governors, and as the Immediate Past President of the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors - Greater Washington D.C.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Hogan Lovells, 555 13th Street Northwest, Washington, United States