Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Spring blooms results in the community

With spring flowers in bloom and summer on its way, people are coming outside to landscape and plant flowers. Last weekend we picked out flowers and plants to put in hanging baskets and flower beds. I also cleared the brush off my herb patch in the backyard. It’s always exciting to see the new sprouts, but with new growth there also come weeds. The hours of hard work are rewarding once I can see the herb plants again.

Spring time at United Way calls for hundreds of volunteer hours, and they’re not spent tending a garden. Instead, people from all walks of life throughout our area give the community their time to help decide which programs will receive funding in 2008. Currently funded programs, as well as new ones, submit an application which includes mission, goals, budgets, results and number of people served in North Wood County, Neillsville, Stratford and Spencer.

These volunteers read the applications in-depth, taking time to learn about Partner Programs, our community’s needs and results accomplished in the previous years. It’s armed with this information that they evaluate applications and make recommendations. Everyone takes this role very seriously because they know they are trusted to make the decision that will make the greatest impacts in the community.

Impact means getting to the heart of a problem to create long lasting change in the lives of people and our community. United Way funding isn’t about throwing money at a quick fix. We want to find out why a situation is happening in the first place and set something in place to prevent it.

It’s like maintaining a garden; the weeds prevent my herbs from thriving. In order for the plants to get rain and sunshine, I need to get down on my hands and knees and pull out all the other weeds stealing the nutrients. This stops the problem temporarily. To prevent the weeds from coming back I need to lay down mulch to stop it from choking out the herbs again. And the results are healthy, flourishing plants.

It’s exciting to see results from the current programs and new initiatives they are undertaking. Have you seen the results? They’re everywhere in our community. Elementary students are receiving preventative dental care, youth of all ages are participating in after school activities and homebound residents are receiving daily hot, nutritious meals, to mention only a few.

We are working together to change lives and make the Marshfield area a better place for people to live and work. United Way programs and volunteers are addressing critical issues facing our family, friends and neighbors every day, during every month of the year … that’s what matters.

If you are interested in attending Vision Councils or volunteering talents and skills you would like to share with United Way or one of the Partner Programs call 394-9992. To learn more about Marshfield Area United Way’s Impact Process and how we’re at work in the community, visit marshfieldareaunitedway.org or email unitedway@tznet.com.

Tuesday, May 08, 2007

United Way grants emergency funds for water heater repair

You don’t think about how much you depend on hot water until your water heater isn’t working. Suddenly, washing dishes and bathing, normally a simple task becomes a laborious and stressful event.

Rosemary Huber and staff at North Central Community Action Program, a United Way funded program, knew they were running on borrowed time with the water heater at Capistry Town Homes. The 7-year-old water heater was repaired in November and started acting up again in January.

The staff would continually have to restart the heater when it would stop working to get it functioning again. “We had to baby it through, to keep it up and running,” Huber said.

Capistry Town Homes is an affordable housing complex in Marshfield that’s home to seven adults and eight children. Residents of this one story, handicap-accessible apartment building never knew if their water would be working that day.

Huber said hot water is a necessity, especially for this home. “We have a very tiny baby living there who needs daily baths,” she said.

House of Heating employees even helped get the heater running throughout the day and night when it would stop. “They were awesome about coming out to look at it—trying to find what was wrong,” Huber said.

But the final diagnosis was it would be cheaper to purchase a new heater rather than fix the current one again. That’s when Rosemary called Marshfield Area United Way. “It’s hard to maintain affordable housing and keep maintenance funds at a level to cover an emergency like this,” Huber said.

Huber requested an emergency grant to allow repair that would provide residents dependable hot water again.

The United Way Executive Committee reviewed the information about the heater’s history and price quotes Huber collected for new installation. It voted and granted one-time emergency funds.

“It seems to me that this is an immediate basic need that we should provide support for. Housing is one of the top priorities in emerging needs and this is one of the few sources providing this type of service,” said Marsha Barwick, board president.

Huber expressed her gratitude to everyone who was involved getting the new heater, which was installed shortly after her grant request was approved. “It means a lot to the residents, everyone’s efforts, getting us through to keep hot water,” she said.

“This is a great example of the Impact Process at work. There was an issue affecting our neighbors, we looked at the facts, worked together and the result is hot water for local families and children,” said Kim Baltus, executive director.

It wouldn’t have been possible without all of the people who work and live in the Marshfield area—from the volunteer hours of the Executive Committee, contributions and the dedication House of Heating showed providing a helping hand. Working together, we can accomplish more than any one program or person can do alone.