Reston's Andere a Northern Virginian of Year

works tirelessly on behalf of the homeless in and her own community.

That's why she has been selected by Northern Virginia Magazine as a 2012 Northern Virginian of the Year.

Andre, 32, is a member of the Board of Directors and the executive director of FACETS, a Fairfax County-based nonprofit that helps the homeless and other vulnerable people.

The June issue of Northern Virginia spotlights Andere and five others for their hard work helping others.

"Amanda Andere works tirelessley to help erase a problem that many misunderstand - or aren't even aware existed," the article says of her work with FACETS.

The June isue of Northern Virginia is on newstands now, but the Northern Virginians of the Year article won't be online until next week.

Andere tells the magazine she is proud of helping to reduce the county's homeless population the last three years. Key to the organization's success, she says, is giving people access to education, employment and affordable housing.

 “I am so humbled  and honored to be recognized in this way," Andere told Patch. "Northern Virginia is my home, and I’m committed to making it a better place to live and work for all of our residents. In a county that has more than 1,700 people who are homeless, FACETS’s work is critically important. Accolades such as this provide a way for us to help the community understand that poverty is a real and serious issue in our very wealthy county.”

Andere, a Herndon native, is also an adjunct professor of nonprofit management at George Mason University, an active member and Sunday School teacher at  in Reston.

She is also on the Northern Virginia Affordable Housing Alliance Advisory Committee; the Nonprofit Roundtable’s Future Executive Director Fellowship Advisory Committee; a co-chair of the Fairfax County Region Four Human Service Network Group; chair of Nonprofit NoVA’s Program Committee. She serves on the board of the Fairfax County Alliance for Human Services and Take Heart Association Project.

Read more about Andere