Advancing the common good is less about helping one person at a time and more about changing systems to help all of us. Everyone deserves opportunities to have a good life: a quality education that leads to a stable job, enough income to support a family through retirement, and good health.
That’s why United Way’s work is focused on the building blocks for a good life:
| Education: | Helping children and youth achieve their potential | |
| Income: | Promoting financial stability leading toward independence | |
| Health: | Improving people’s health |
We all win when a child succeeds in school, when families are financially stable, when people are healthy.
United Way’s goal is to create long-lasting changes by addressing the underlying causes of problems in our community. Living united means being a part of the change. It takes everyone in the community working together to create a brighter future.
Why Education?Some 80 percent of United Ways are making children a focus – in funding, community change work and policy advocacy. Many are doing it with Born Learning and Success By 6® coalitions, galvanizing communities to raise awareness of early learning, support families, and push for programs, budgets and laws improving young children's lives. Children learn best in loving, nurturing relationships and through everyday experiences. Whether children are at home, with relatives or friends, or in childcare – the quality of early education is critical to later school success. The United Way is passionate about improving the quality of and access to childcare and equipping parents to make the best choice for their family. Children entering kindergarten with skills they need to succeed are more likely to graduate from high school and become productive workers. United Ways are funding mentoring programs and after-school initiatives, putting volunteers in classrooms and supporting dropout prevention programs. |
Why Income?The community and family issues that stem from the economic and financial pressures facing individuals and their families are growing increasingly complex and more difficult to address. Quite often income has not kept pace with the rising cost of housing, healthcare, and education placing considerable strain on the most vulnerable members of our community, especially seniors and people with special needs. In Westport and Weston four of the top five requests from United Way 2-1-1 relate to income and stability. The requests are for referrals to Homeless Shelters, Helplines/Warmlines, Utility Assistance and Temporary Financial Assistance. The Westport Warm Up Fund received a record number of requests and was forced to raise the level of assistance in order to manage the demand. |
Why Health?United Way 2-1-1 received 6,011 calls in Connecticut from July 1, 2005-June 30,2006 for health related support services. In Westport and Weston residents were most often in search of referrals for counseling services, medical transportation, and inpatient drug detoxification. The United Way is committed to providing access to quality counseling services and works closely with community partners to increase the availability of sliding-scale services. Teens and youth need information that will help them make decisions that directly impact their health including sexual activity, substance use and abuse, and/or other dangerous behaviors. The United Way is committed to preventing risky behaviors in teens by supporting programs that encourage positive and supportive relationships and teach the life skills needed to make responsible choices. |