A Lifetime of Giving
She likes to call it “our United Way.” But she could very well call it hers.
Frida Burling is 94 years old. She has been a donor to—and a champion of—United Way of the National Capital Area for 74 consecutive years. No one in the Washington area comes close, either in consistent giving or passion for the cause.
Seventy-four years……. That’s 11 presidents, four major wars, three Washington baseball teams, two husbands, three children, 47 living descendants. Yet for Frida Burling, United Way has been a constant.
“It’s not only a duty, it’s a pleasure,” she told me, over tea and cookies in the living room of her Georgetown home one afternoon this week. “It’s an honor to help people who need it.”
Frida Burling ascribes her philanthropic spirit to a bumpy—and occasionally poverty-stricken—childhood.
Her parents split up when she was a girl, and her mother had to seek shelter from Frida’s grandparents, who lived in Washington. It was not a hand-to-mouth existence, but it wasn’t close to luxurious.
“Having grown up realizing how bad it can be, I can empathize with” Washington’s poor, she said. “I can ache for hungry children.”
Frida had her debut at 18, and joined the Junior League (an upper-crust women’s group) at 20. Through Junior League, she raised her first funds for a forerunner of United Way. “It’s what you did,” she explained.
Through both of her marriages, raising money—and donating it—became a way of life. “I worked at selling real estate when I was married to my first husband, but my heart was in helping the community,” Frida said. She has never stopped doing it, across nearly three-quarters of a century.
Her second husband, Edward Burling Jr., was a founding partner of one of the city’s oldest and best-known law firms, Covington and Burling. When they married in 1959, “I realized that I didn’t have to sell real estate any more,” Frida said, with a wink.
“Eddie loved horses. I didn’t care about either end of a horse.” Instead, Frida worked tirelessly as a board member and fundraiser for several Washington non-profits, all of which serve children and families. Meanwhile, she gave and gave and gave to United Way.
Frida says it won’t end until she does.
“Anything I can do, I would be glad to do,” she said. “Anything.”
Frida Burling is 94 years old. She has been a donor to—and a champion of—United Way of the National Capital Area for 74 consecutive years. No one in the Washington area comes close, either in consistent giving or passion for the cause.
Seventy-four years……. That’s 11 presidents, four major wars, three Washington baseball teams, two husbands, three children, 47 living descendants. Yet for Frida Burling, United Way has been a constant.
“It’s not only a duty, it’s a pleasure,” she told me, over tea and cookies in the living room of her Georgetown home one afternoon this week. “It’s an honor to help people who need it.”
Frida Burling ascribes her philanthropic spirit to a bumpy—and occasionally poverty-stricken—childhood.
Her parents split up when she was a girl, and her mother had to seek shelter from Frida’s grandparents, who lived in Washington. It was not a hand-to-mouth existence, but it wasn’t close to luxurious.
“Having grown up realizing how bad it can be, I can empathize with” Washington’s poor, she said. “I can ache for hungry children.”
Frida had her debut at 18, and joined the Junior League (an upper-crust women’s group) at 20. Through Junior League, she raised her first funds for a forerunner of United Way. “It’s what you did,” she explained.
Through both of her marriages, raising money—and donating it—became a way of life. “I worked at selling real estate when I was married to my first husband, but my heart was in helping the community,” Frida said. She has never stopped doing it, across nearly three-quarters of a century.
Her second husband, Edward Burling Jr., was a founding partner of one of the city’s oldest and best-known law firms, Covington and Burling. When they married in 1959, “I realized that I didn’t have to sell real estate any more,” Frida said, with a wink.
“Eddie loved horses. I didn’t care about either end of a horse.” Instead, Frida worked tirelessly as a board member and fundraiser for several Washington non-profits, all of which serve children and families. Meanwhile, she gave and gave and gave to United Way.
Frida says it won’t end until she does.
“Anything I can do, I would be glad to do,” she said. “Anything.”
posted by Bob Levey's United Way at
10:25 AM
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