The Income & Safety Council of the United Way of the Ozarks earlier this week recommended funding of $750,000 for 10 programs that address basic needs and self-sufficiency.
According to a news release, 2013-14 recommendations, made to the United Way’s board of directors, are split among programs at four organizations:
- Habitat for Humanity was recommended to receive $90,400 to support its family services program and provide Tools for Life training for more than 1,400 low-income families to help prepare them for homeownership.
- Ozarks Literacy Council was recommended for total funding of $50,725 for three programs. The organization would receive $31,000 for a basic literacy program that works to meet literacy goals for adults and improve reading scores for children. The program serves about 110 people a year, and about half are children. OLC also would receive $10,000 for a child and family literacy program that focuses on exposing Ozarks children to a wider variety of books, serving 1,800 children a year. The remainder of OLC’s recommended funds are for reading advocacy and efforts to provide more books for roughly 2,500 children a year.
- Retired and Senior Volunteer Program-Council of Churches is recommended to receive $75,000 to help the RSVP Reading Buddy program move forward. The program matches senior volunteers with students for weekly reading practice to help improve student reading and provide tutoring and mentoring. The program serves more than 500 students a year.
- The Salvation Army was recommended for $527,800 to benefit five programs. Its Family Enrichment Center is to receive $20,584 to support emergency housing, case management, job counseling, workshops and study groups for those dealing with physical and emotional crises. The center serves more than 100 individuals a year, focusing on the goal of self-sufficiency. Salvation Army’s Harbor House Shelter is recommended for funding of $118,755 to help retrain homeless men so that they obtain and keep jobs and permanent housing. Harbor House serves more than 140 men a year. The Harbor House Frontline Feeding Program is set to receive $35,890 to support its efforts to provide nutritious lunches year-round for more than 500 indigent and homeless individuals a year. The Newstart Housing Program will receive $51,197 to support temporary housing that transitions low-income families with children from shelters to self-sufficiency. The program serves more than 30 people a year. The remainder of recommended Salvation Army funding – $301,374 – would be used for emergency social services and meeting short-term needs including food, clothing, rental assistance, transportation and medical assistance. Such assistance is provided for more than 17,000 people a year, the release said.
“These agencies work hard to break the cycles of illiteracy, shelter living and dependency," said Johnny Washington, Missouri State University philosophy professor and co-chairperson of the Income & Safety Council, in the release. “This process connects all the dots – what the issues are, how our partner agencies are working to solve these issues and how, through the United Way’s fundraising efforts, our partner agencies can continue to provide assistance to the ever-growing number of people in our communities that need the help.”
