United Way of Greater Saint Joseph

Allocated servicestraditionally, United Way has been known for harnessing the caring power of community through giving, advocating and volunteering and is most well-known for the annual United Way campaign that takes place each fall. Through the campaign, hundreds of businesses and thousands of individuals make pledges to improve lives through the caring power of community. The majority of dollars raised through the annual campaign are allocated to the network of United Way partner agencies to help sustain their current programs and services. More than 150 volunteers are involved in deciding how those donor dollars are allocated. In 2022 the network of United Way partner agencies and initiatives improved lives through the caring power of community in the following ways, plus many more: education: United Way of Greater St. Joseph works to help people of all ages reach their potential through a variety of educational pursuits that will, in turn, strengthen our community. Quality early learning, youth education in and out of the classroom, and other instruction for life-long learning are just a few ways United Way supports education. Nearly 350 children received early care and education to help them begin their school years ready to learn. More than 1,000 students participated in after-school youth activities and programs. More than 65 local professionals shared with more than 1,000 students about their careers in business, skilled trades, information technology, public safety and healthcare. 109 teens found a safe place to hang out, work on homework & life skills, and connect with peers and mentors at a teen drop-in center. Thousands of new and gently loved books were distributed to local children to encourage their love of reading and build their home libraries.health: in the Greater St. Joseph area, your contributions help people of all ages improve their physical and mental well-being. Health is promoted through fitness and wellness activities, nutrition and in-home services, counseling, and other important programs. Good health is crucial for everyone. More than 5,000 adults and children received needed mental health services. 455 senior adults received 75,506 nutritious meals to help maintain health. More than 1,302 people worked through alcohol and drug addiction recovery. More than 645 youth participated in organized sports and activities. 129 children with a disability or special need and their families received services thathelped the children work toward important developmental milestones.financial stability: stable household finances are important for daily living, which is why United Way of Greater St. Joseph also focuses on financial stability. United Way supports efforts for families and individuals in crisis. Such efforts include food, disaster relief, information and referral, and shelter services related to homelessness or domestic violence. United Way is also working to prevent financial situations from becoming problems in the first place. 472 men, women, and children received 21,076 nights of emergency shelter. 252 low-income or elderly people were represented at no cost for non-criminal court cases. 126 previously homeless households (187 people) lived in transitional, permanent, or supportive housing. 113 individuals with mental health or substance abuse disorders gained and maintained competitive employment for at least 6 months through a supported employment program. 143 adults with disabilities held jobs through sheltered and supported employment. Hundreds of households were assisted with varying types of emergency assistance to help maintain stability. A portion of each year's campaign is held in a grant making fund called the United Way community investment fund. Through this grant opportunity, area non-profits that meet United Way's criteria in financial accountability, program delivery and outcomes are eligible to apply for grants to further meet community or agency needs. Community investment fund grants can help innovative programs begin, build capacity, meet organizational needs within agencies so they can continue their mission to the fullest or minimize the impact to clients when significant program changes occur.

Communicationsit takes strong community support to produce the level of program achievements and sustaining that support requires an active communications effort. United Way lets donors and the general public know about the organization's accomplishments through printed materials including; an annual report, e-newsletters, web site, video productions, media outreach, and special events.

United Way initiatives and programsfinancial stability providing opportunities for individuals and families to become financially self-sufficient since 2009. In 2022, United Way promoted free tax preparation services offered through partner agency interserv and myfreetaxes.com. Interserv helped 1,025 community members file tax returns and receive refunds totaling $956,748. Free tax preparation services help individuals and families keep and save their own money.leadership St. Joseph building the skills of individuals to be effective leaders in the community since 1982. United Way leadership St. Joseph is an annual, year-long leadership development program for adults living or working in the St. Joseph area. The program helps create a network of trained individuals willing to engage in leadership and community service with enhanced knowledge of our community's opportunities, realities and challenges. In 2022, the program returned to in-person sessions and 25 community members graduated from the program. Since 1982, the total number of graduates is 973. During the year, participants learned and practiced project development and essential leadership skills. The class was divided into four groups and was challenged to learn the process of developing a project that would meet a community need. Group projects included financial literacy videos for young adults, a resource guide for fathers, community mentors for college students and "harvest boxes" containing fresh produce from local community gardens to promote healthy nutrition. The 2022 distinguished leader award was presented to brenda k. shields, 1990 United Way leadership St. Joseph graduate. The distinguished leader award is presented every year to an individual who exemplifies leadership while serving the Greater St. Joseph community. Profit in education improving the education level of the potential and current workforce since 1989. United Way profit in education works to increase the high school graduation rate and collaborate with and support education efforts across the community. In 2022, United Way reading adventure was held at four school-age child care sites during the summer and at three elementary schools during the fall semester, reaching more than 200 children. The goal of United Way reading adventure is to help elementary-age students maintain and improve their reading skills and help build their home libraries through new and donated books. In partnership with second harvest's no hunger summer, United Way take a book tuesday distributed thousands of books to hundreds of children throughout the summer. United Way speakers' bureau linked volunteers from different industries with classrooms, career days and events to help students learn about various careers and employer expectations. More than 65 local professionals shared with more than 1,000 students about their careers in business, skilled trades, information technology, public safety and healthcare. Singlecare prescription assistance saving residents money on prescription medication with a free prescription discount card since 2007. The United Way singlecare prescription discount card can be used as often as needed by anyone for any qualifying prescription; it is like a reusable coupon for many different prescriptions. During 2022, people in the area saved $217,817. The Greater St. Joseph community has saved $2,884,701 on prescriptions since the program's beginning. To obtain a card, please call the United Way office or visit stjosephunitedway.org.success by 6 preparing children to be successful learners when they begin kindergarten since 1999. United Way success by 6 works to prepare all children to be successful learners when they begin kindergarten. The initiative works through community-wide collaborations to support parents, child care providers and others to facilitate the development of children ages birth to six. Supporting quality early care and education in 2022, support was provided to early care and education professionals through educational scholarships, trainings and leadership development opportunities. Eight individuals were awarded scholarships to pursue associate and bachelor degrees in early education. Area providers recorded more than 1,212 hours of training through workshops, events and sessions organized by United Way success by 6. An annual day long conferencethe directors' symposiumreturned as an in-person event on the campus of Missouri western state university and provided early care and education leaders an opportunity to connect with each other and learn about key leadership and management topics. Supporting parents and primary caregivers resources and training to empower parents and primary caregivers to be their child's best first teacher were made available in 2022. A series of 'raising children with conscious discipline' sessions were offered in the spring and fall. These trainings help parents and caregivers understand how to support the social and emotional development of children. Parent educators from the St. Joseph school district delivered United Way success by 6 baby bags to more than 400 families with newborns at mosaic life care. Baby bags included guides to early development, information about local resources and a new children's book to help build each child's home library. United Way kinderclub is a program designed to prepare soon-to-be kindergarteners and their families for success in kindergarten and beyond. Area school districts were able to offer United Way kinderclub to their families through lesson plans and resources provided by United Way. Home visitors, parent educators and other parent education professionals work directly with parents and primary caregivers providing support and resources to help them facilitate their child's development. In partnership with the St. Joseph school district parents as teachers and community action partnership head start, United Way continued to organize a home visitors' network which included professional development sessions and strengthened the coordination between family serving organizations. Improving the systems that impact children and families United Way continues to serve as the capacity building partner for child care aware of Missouri and the co-leader of Missouri department of elementary and secondary education's regional hub readiness project in northwest Missouri. This work builds collaborative partnerships across the region to support young children and their families. In 2022, United Way was able to offer assistance to child care providers applying for grants from the state of Missouri. Providers in the region were awarded more than $2.25 million which helped sustain 2,168 licensed child care slots and create 246 new slots. Throughout the year, representatives from business, government, education and child care met to discuss the availability and affordability of child care; how to prepare children for kindergarten; how to connect families to resources to positively impact their child's growth and development; and other topics.unmet needs committee collaborating to connect people in need to resources to solve immediate needs with lasting impact since 1993. United Way unmet needs committee is a group comprised of representatives from non-profits, churches, utility companies, government agencies and community members who meet regularly to identify resources and solutions for cases brought before them by agencies. In 2022, the committee collaborated on cases with medical needs and complex barriers to stability. In addition, the committee shared program updates to keep one another aware of existing, new and changing resources. Volunteer center connecting the community through volunteerism since 2009. United Way volunteer center is a central resource for volunteer needs across the Greater St. Joseph area. Individuals, groups and corporations seeking volunteer opportunities can find a variety of options calling for varying levels of commitment available at many different non-profit organizations. In 2022, through United Way volunteer center's online presence, 92 unique volunteer opportunities were shared by 25 local agencies. Throughout the year United Way community volunteer resource network (cvrn) meetings were attended by individuals who manage volunteers for local organizations. Cvrn promotes and develops effective volunteer management programs in the community and enhances the knowledge, skills and connections among members. United Way is building capacity of community volunteer coordinators through the network. The 14th year of United Way stuff the bus! School supplies drive, sponsored by mosaic life care, brought together more than 200 volunteers who collected more than 21,000 school supply items. Collected supplies were distributed through the salvation army and to area schools. T

Othergeneral activities of the United Way, which contribute to building community coalitions, participating in community groups and supporting community planning, are accounted for in the community building program. United Way's role goes far beyond the raising and allocating of dollars and implementation of initiatives and programming. In recent years, United Way has participated in a number of community coalitions, committees, task forces and efforts that improve the community. In many cases United Way is an active participant, providing staff resources, leadership, facilitation, advocacy and action. Continuum of care for homeless services ; meril networking lunches; coad (community organizations active in disaster); lepc (local emergency planning committee); mosaic life care foundation children's discovery center committee; St. Joseph chamber of commerce workforce development committee; St. Joseph chamber of commerce diplomats; St. Joseph chamber of commerce member council; St. Joseph chamber of commerce government relations committee; St. Joseph chamber of commerce finance committee; St. Joseph community alliance; imagine St. Joseph 2040 implementation team; downtown rotary club #32; kiwanis club of St. Joseph; kiwanis club of St. Joseph board of directors; St. Joseph school district parents as teachers advisory committee; St. Joseph school district school counseling advisory council; St. Joseph school district early childhood professions advisory committee; north central Missouri college early childhood education advisory committee; Missouri western state university teacher education advisory board; dc fly in; Joseph company; Missouri western state university craig school of business advisory committee; kids win Missouri child care coalition; kids win Missouri early childhood workgroup; maximize northwest Missouri communications team; Missouri early connections regional hub collaborative network; child care aware of Missouri capacity building partner group; opioid task force; Missouri preschool development grant stakeholder group; St. Joseph school district carpentry program advisory; saint Joseph Missouri marathon steering committee; mertland fire response & recovery committee; brittany village response work group; main street St. Joseph; great northwest daysunited Way also fills gaps and responds in unplanned and unexpected ways when gaps are recognized. Examples of this include the creation of United Way's housing stability and covid-19 relief funds, disaster response and facilitation of planning for community issues such as winter emergency shelter for those experiencing homelessness.