Fred Rogers’ query “Won’t you be my neighbor?” has become an unofficial motto for Pittsburgh, and it’s one that the education technology company Duolingo has taken to heart.

“One of the things that is very important to Duolingo is that we should be good neighbors to our community,” said Anthony Verardi, senior research program manager at Duolingo and one of the leads of the organization’s LGBTQIA+ employee resource group (ERG). “Our company makes it a priority to do these things, which is very refreshing.”

Duolingo has supported the work of Allies for Health + Wellbeing for many years now. In addition to sponsoring Allies events, Duolingo staff members volunteer at Allies, and several staffers have given to Allies through Duolingo’s employee giving program. One of those volunteers is Danielle Dionne, senior learning scientist at Duolingo and co-lead of the ERG. She volunteered at Allies’ 40th birthday celebrations in 2025 and tabled for Allies at Pride events that summer.

“We have a lot of Pittsburgh-based Duo employees who are from the area, so partnering with a nonprofit like you guys, it's like a no brainer,” Dionne said. “Our employees are big fans of the work that you're doing.”

“It's a very natural choice for us,” Verardi said. “We've been based in East Liberty; historically, you've also been based in East Liberty. I know we have members that make use of your services.”

Verardi and Dionne recently met with Allies staff members Alex Neal, chief external relations officer, and Megan Naji, development coordinator to talk about how Duolingo can continue supporting Allies.

“We had Alex and Megan come in for lunch one day, and we asked them point blank, ‘What are your needs?’” Dionne said. “One of the things they mentioned was the pantry, and that with budget cuts and the state of the world these days, that's been a place where Allies has had to stretch things to provide for people. That felt like a clear win for us because we know people love to help donate.”

In response to that conversation, the Duolingo LGBTQIA+ ERG raised about $5,600 to purchase goods for the Allies food pantry, which they then had delivered to Allies. Items included pet food, cat litter, snack items, canned goods, pantry staples such as oil and vinegar, aluminum foil, food storage bags and garbage bags. Many of these items are not typically stocked in the Allies food pantry but are frequently requested by Allies’ clients.

“We’re incredibly grateful to Duolingo for their support of Allies,” Neal said. “The ERG’s donation to the food pantry is just the latest example. Because of their generosity, our clients can access needed goods that we are not often able to provide for them.”

“I think Danielle and I are both very much of the mind that the best thing we can do is build community to help distribute the resources we have access to,” Verardi said. “We are you. We are your community. We are your clientele.”

If you are interested in learning more about corporate partnership with Allies, please contact Megan Naji, development coordinator, at mnaji@alliespgh.org(opens in a new tab).