National 2-1-1 Day, celebrated on February 11, recognizes the more than 200 2-1-1 helplines located across the country. For the past 20 years, United Way for Greater Austin’s 2-1-1 helpline has connected thousands of Central Texans to local, statewide, and national resources such as housing, food, health, child care, education, employment, transportation, counseling, disaster information, and more. This year, we are celebrating 2-1-1 Day by recognizing our compassionate Navigation Specialists, who power this service and work around the clock to answer the call for members of our community. Just last year, our 2-1-1 Navigation Specialists answered 157,514 calls for help in our region. One of these specialists is Susan Martinez. She began working at United Way last year because she believes everyone in our community deserves to have their basic needs met. “There’s a real disparity in wealth here that’s getting bigger and bigger,” Susan said. “We all have to do what we can to close that gap. I feel like it’s our duty as humans to help out and do our part, however small that may be.” Read more about why and how Susan answers the call day in, day out to support fellow Texans – and how each and every call advances our mission to fight poverty. What brought you to United Way? I’ve always been involved in some sort of volunteer work in nonprofits since my 20’s. I liked that the mission of United Way is to end poverty because it’s such a huge problem all over […]
Read MoreUnited Way Launches Model Community Initiative for Greater Austin Area
Zip code shouldn’t determine what opportunities are available to families, such as jobs, grocery stores, child care, schools, and safe housing–but in our current reality, it does. To support more equitable access to social services for everyone, we are launching a Model Community initiative, a person-centered framework that brings together various agencies, community clinics, and education institutions to offer more holistic delivery of social services. Funded by the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, Episcopal Health Foundation, and St. David’s Foundation, Model Community allows service providers–from health clinics to schools and community-based organizations–to develop a comprehensive view of an individual’s needs, in an effort to coordinate cross-organizational support to improve their quality of life outcomes. Research from the World Health Organization shows that social determinants of health–the non-medical factors and systems that shape one’s quality of life–can have a significant impact on health outcomes. Determinants such as access to education, housing, and healthcare account for between 30-55% of health outcomes. “Our goal is to bring together partners from all sectors including policy makers, health care entities, those with lived experience, funders, grassroots advocates, and community-based organizations to create a more efficient, proactive, human-centered path to connect individuals to social services and therefore improve overall health in the the Greater Austin area,” said Stephanie Cerda, Director of Model Community at United Way. “This work must be informed, led, and owned by the community.” As part of the initiative, our ConnectATX platform currently serves as one of the public-facing access points for the Model […]
Read MoreTeaching Children to Give During the Holidays
It’s that time of the year again, a time when stores are filled with shoppers prepping for various holiday festivities. The holidays are typically a time when children are used to receiving gifts from friends and loved ones. What tends to slip our minds during this time of the year is the importance of teaching children to give back as they receive. Encouraging your children to volunteer and give back helps foster a sense of philanthropy and generosity at a young age. Combining efforts as a family to help others means you are making a difference! Volunteering as a family is a special experience that gives your young ones the opportunity to think beyond themselves. If your child is old enough to have developed interests, it can also be a good idea to involve them in the decision-making process of what organizations and activities the family chooses to spend time doing. This allows your child to develop a deeper connection to what they are doing and makes them feel appreciated. On November 21st, UWATX celebrated National Family Volunteer Day by hosting our own Family Volunteer Day event. Forty-nine people (adults, children and teens) came together to decorate ornaments, drop off books for a book drive and write holiday cards to local teachers. We spoke to Crystal Cotti, UWATX Campaign Co-Chair, who attended the event with her two daughters: What made you sign your group up to volunteer today? “I’m always looking for ways to teach my girls the holidays are about giving, not getting.” What was your favorite […]
Read MoreKerbey Lane Cafe Features Middle School Community Art Projects
It started with “community,” and the web grew to include “pride,” “diversity,” “friendship,” and “health.” Students at Decker Middle School drew a word web to show how ideas are connected in order to guide their planning for a community art project. Throughout the month of October, students at all three Middle School Matters campuses worked to complete 20 canvasses that illustrate varying perspectives on community. The project aimed to show students how art can be used to start a conversation or spark community change. The paintings, designed and created by Volunteer Project Leader (VPL) students will be on display at Kerbey Lane Café at the Southwest location starting on November 2nd. In VPL, students plan, implement and reflect on volunteer projects that match their interests, and the paintings show broad variations on the theme of making a positive contribution to your community. A bright nature scene reminds us to recycle, multi-colored handprints underpinning a Spanish phrase celebrate shared space, and cartoon animals promote self-acceptance with the phrase, “There’s nothing wrong with who you like. There’s nothing wrong with who you are”. By displaying student work, Kerbey Lane Café recognizes these middle school students as leaders in their community and creates an uncommon opportunity for middle school students to start a community-wide conversation. Make sure to stop by the Kerbey Lane Café on William Cannon to see the works of art for yourself, or attend our Big Game Superbowl party in February where we will auction off some of the pieces. Learn […]
Read MoreYour Guide to the Most Philanthropic Day Ever
At United Way for Greater Austin, we believe that anyone can be a philanthropist. Any donation, no matter how small, of time or money makes a difference. Fortunately, living in Austin provides you with many opportunities to give back to organizations that are working to improve the world we live in, both locally and globally. From restaurants, clothing stores, volunteer-based organizations, coffee shops and more, you can discover a variety of ways to contribute and show your support for amazing causes in traditional and non-traditional ways. Here is a guide to help you have the most philanthropic day possible in Austin: 7 a.m. – Wake up and head to TOMS Roasting Co. on South Congress to start your morning off right with a fresh cup of coffee. TOMS Roasting CO. Austin serves a selection of fair trade, direct trade and blend coffee. Proceeds from coffee purchases go towards providing water to people in need. Your purchase from Toms Roasting Co. supports health improvement, increased economic opportunity, access to education and job creation. Location: 1401 S Congress Ave. Hours of Operation: Monday – Friday 6 a.m. – 8 p.m. Saturday 7 a.m. – 9 p.m., Sunday 7 a.m. – 8 p.m. Phone Number: 512-350-2115 9 a.m. – Get your workout in and bond with cute animals in need! Take a dog for a run through the RuffTail Runner’s program, which collaborates with Austin Pets Alive!’s Town Lake Animal Center, Pflugerville Pets Alive! and the Bastrop County Animal Shelter. By volunteering with RuffTail Runners, you help […]
Read MoreLooking for a warm meal this holiday season?
Each year, our Navigation Center sees a spike of calls during the holiday season – people looking to help by donating food, toys, gifts or their time and also calls from people looking for a warm meal for the holidays. We’ve compiled this calendar of resources that are FREE and OPEN TO THE PUBLIC to make it a little easier to find that warm meal: Click on the image above to see a larger version PDF. Know someone looking for assistance? Tell them to give us a call at 2-1-1 to get connected to resources in our community.
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