On December 3rd, United Way held an Investment Volunteer Reception at Beside Bardenay to celebrate the kickoff of this process. The event, sponsored by Intermountain Community Bank, was attended by United Way Staff, Board members, and volunteers who will commit their time over the next few months to ensure that these funds are invested in quality programs.
Over 80 volunteers will review grant applications, attend site visits and engage in discussions with non-profit leaders in the Treasure Valley. To see a complete list of programs that have applied for funding, visit 2010-11 Grant Applicants (PDF).
The volunteers’ funding recommendations will be made to United Way of Treasure Valley’s Community Impact Council, which presents the recommendations to the Board of Directors in March, 2010.
Community leaders from across the valley raised shovels Tuesday to officially break ground on the long-awaited Substance Abuse and Mental Health Crisis Center in Boise. The new facility is scheduled to open its doors March 1, 2010.
“After years of constructive conversation, I’m proud to announce that we now have construction – and as important as conversation can be, in this case construction is what is needed,” Mayor David Bieter said. “The ground we break today represents a new and necessary addition to our services – not only for those in need in our community, but also for taxpayers who expect those services to be delivered in a cost-effective manner.”
The 9,200-square-foot facility will extend emergency sobering services, detoxification services, and mental health crisis services to Boise Valley residents in need. The facility is planned to provide a sobering station, 12 beds for detoxification and eight beds for mental health crisis.
Construction cost of the facility is estimated at $2.7 million, with an annual operating budget of $1.8 million. The facility will be owned and maintained by the Boise City/Ada County Housing Authority.
Other funding partners include United Way of Treasure Valley, Region IV Mental Health Board, the J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation, Boise City/Ada County Housing Authority, Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center, St. Luke’s Regional Medical Center, and the Community Detox Coalition. Additional construction funding was provided through federal funds brought home by Idaho’s Congressional Delegation.
Blog post by Neva Geisler, Director of Volunteer Engagement
We’re going to raise $6 million during this year’s campaign.
I say this with confidence because I believe it. I believe it so much, in fact, that I’m already thinking of the agencies who are going to be relieved to hear that in an economic downturn, when their resources are being stressed to the max, they’re going to get a little extra help from their community.
I believe it because the Idaho Foodbank just told me not to send over a group of volunteers because they didn’t have enough food on their shelves for them to sort. I believe it because Jesse Tree, an emergency rental assistance agency who receives UW grant money, recently told us they are receiving more requests for help from intact families than ever before.
Hardworking people who are living paycheck to paycheck, are struggling under dramatic increases in food, energy and gas prices. When they can’t quite make it to the next paycheck, these are the services that are there to make sure they don’t fall through the cracks.
And it’s not just these emergency services, it’s the stuff that prevents people from being at risk in the first place–it’s programs that help youth reach their potential, families achieve financial stability, and substance abuse recovery and mental health crisis services. Last year’s community donations are at work at more than 30 different agencies in the Treasure Valley. View the list.
When you look at the web of services, how they all work together to lift people to a better quality of life, it is impossible to choose where you’d make the cuts.
Which is why I believe that we can raise $6 million–because we can and we have to.
Blog post by Melissa Nickell, Director, Community Impact Investments
The Community Investment Process is one of the most eye opening experiences I’ve had. I had no idea how many community members were willing to (and do) invest their free time to improve the lives of those around them. All while asking for nothing in return. Over 65 volunteers and over 1,900 volunteer hours spent in three months reviewing applications for accuracy, asking questions, listening to agency presentations, having lengthy discussions and personally visiting every agency applying for funds. It is clear that anyone signing up for this volunteer opportunity is dedicated to improving the community and willing to invest what it takes to make it happen. Even if it means driving over an hour during a snow storm… yes, it’s been done!
I can honestly say that I learned more about the needs of the community as well as the level of care and generosity during the three months of the investment process than I had in the eight years of living in Boise prior to the experience. Every agency offers a different perspective and yet, they all work together. Every volunteer offers a different perspective and area of experience and they also work together as a team to make some really tough decisions. How much are we able to invest and where will it make the most positive impact on the community? This is no easy task when the amount requested is twice as much as the amount available to invest. But the difficult investment decisions are made every year thanks to the time and efforts of those who take on the time intensive opportunity.
One thing I often hear from Review Team Volunteers is how much they have learned and what a great opportunity it is. Although it is a large time commitment, it is also a very rewarding one. And at the end of the day, or I should say at the end of the month, they have helped to ensure that contributions from over 15,000 donors who generously contributed to the Community Care Fund were invested in the best way to help the most people.
In 2006, Money Magazine ranked Boise, Idaho the eighth “Best Place to Live” in America. In that same year, Idaho was ranked as the eighth hungriest state in the county.
In 2007, Boise was named one of the “100 Best Cities for Children” by America’s Promise. And yet 17 percent of children born in Idaho are born into poverty.
Idahoans built nearly 68,000 new homes since 2001; the 12.8 percent increase was the seventh highest in the nation. And yet there are an estimated 2,000-3,000 homeless people in Boise.
What’s going on here?
We recognized a serious and growing disconnect between those enjoying a high quality of life in the Treasure Valley and those who are struggling to get by. So why is that?
We started talking to people–all kinds of people. We asked them what they knew, what they saw and what, if anything, they wanted to do about this livability gap. Occasionally we would hear how lucky we were to live in a place like Boise, where “there weren’t any of the problems you see in big cities, like hunger of homelessness.”
We discovered that people wanted to do something they just didn’t know what or how or where. Also no surprise, whatever the what, how, where was, it had to be something that could be worked into a life full of jobs, kids, school, commuting; the stuff of life. What we needed was a perspective commitment, not a time commitment. We had to get people out there on the front lines of need, so that they could see it firsthand. The story tells itself; we just had to give people a chance to hear it. It was the perfect example of how United Way could bring people together to address issues in our community.
Thus was born the United Way Direct Impact Response Team, (D.I.R.T.)
DIRT is a loose knit group of volunteers who give one lunch hour a month to volunteer at a project that is dirty or otherwise difficult to recruit help for.
There are only three criteria for DIRT projects:
1. They help people
2. There’s an opportunity for education
3. The project is considered undesirable or too difficult for traditional volunteer groups
Anyone can come and everyone is welcome. The format makes it easy for people—all people, to do a little something that takes them out of their daily routine and into the community to places they may not otherwise see. It is a chance to gain a different perspective on our community, without a large time commitment that might thwart their inclination to do something.
Founding DIRT Clod, Holly Sue Kerns, said this about getting DIRTy:
Holly Sue Kerns, Founding DIRT Clod
“What I love the most about DIRT is that I have gotten to work with so many different types of people in our community and have had such a great time doing it. I have worked with many non-profits in the past and have gotten a bad taste in my mouth because I felt like I was caught up in red tape and meetings–never really feeling like I actually helped someone. With DIRT I see the end result of what I am doing and who I am helping. I just love it.”
You are currently browsing the archives for the Community Impact Investments category.
About United Way of Treasure Valley
United Way of Treasure Valley advances the common good by focusing on education, income and health. These are the building blocks for a good life -- a quality education that leads to a stable job, enough income to support a family through retirement, and good health. Our goal is to create long-lasting changes that prevent problems from happening in the first place. We invite everyone to be part of the change. Together, united, we can inspire hope and create opportunities for a better tomorrow.
No Comments | Add Comment to this post
