Community Action News
May 2020
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READY & RESILIENT
It is hard to believe next month will mark my one-year anniversary as Executive Director of WCAC. I would not have predicted a global pandemic and economic cliff-fall as the first crises I would face in my first year. Thankfully, I have a great team at WCAC that is working together to plan, respond and persist through these unprecedented times and think about the long-term role of WCAC in the community.
We know through decades of work that our clients are disproportionately impacted by policies and pathologies that have diminished their ability to prosper. This has never been better highlighted than during our current public health and economic crises created by COVID19. COVID19 has been the great floodlight, shining light on massive inequities across our health, education, housing, and social systems.
As executive director, I want to harness all that WCAC has to offer and take our work to the next level to not only be a stabilizing factor but also be a propellant that launches our clients to a place where the need for our services is ultimately obsolete. This requires our agency to imagine a community where our work is playing an active role in breaking the cycle of intergenerational poverty for every neighbor we serve.
In the coming months, WCAC anticipates a far greater demand for our services as our collective community looks to recover from the devastating impact of the COVID19 crisis. Our focus first is, and will continue to be, the health and well-being of our staff and clients.
As we celebrate WCAC's 55th anniversary in conjunction with Community Action Awareness month throughout the month of May, WCAC stands committed and ready now and into the future to help and connect vulnerable families with the resources they need survive and thrive.
If you are in a position to support our efforts, particularly during these challenging times, I would encourage you to
make a donation online
today. Together, we do better.
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Marybeth Campbell, Executive Director
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VIRTUAL LEARNING
Just as households throughout the country have had to adjust to virtual learning with public schools closed, so too has WCAC's Job & Education Center. Thirteen youth are currently participating in WCAC's Innovation Pathway Program, a partnership with Worcester Public Schools. Three have already completed the work readiness Signal Success program and are now leading trainings for the other participants.
A tip of the hat to
WCAC Program Coordinator Yetziann Ortiz
who's strong virtual training work has been identified for replication in other school districts by the Department of Elementary & Secondary Education!
If you or someone you know are between the ages of 16-24 and are interested in educational and/0r employment assistance, please
contact us
.
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HOME HEATING ASSISTANCE
Are you or someone you know struggling with home heating bills? Suddenly unemployed or facing reduced wages due the COVID19 crisis? Please note that the
deadline to apply for fuel/home heating assistance has been extended until May 29th
. Payments are made directly to fuel vendors for deliveries and usage between November 1st and April 30th. You may be eligible for reimbursements for payments already made this winter.
You can maintain social distance by starting your application on the phone, and can mail or email applications as WCAC's offices remain closed to the public.
Please email us at
LIHEAP@wcac.net
or text HEAT (English) or CALOR (Spanish) to 80123 for further assistance.
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VIRTUAL VISITS
WCAC's
Healthy Families of Southern Worcester County and
Early Head Start(EHS) programs are both home
based models where staff, through
weekly home visits, provide nearly 120 families the opportunity for parenting support, education as well as community referrals. COVID19 brought home visits to a screeching halt on March 17th. WCAC staff quickly transitioned to virtual visits - remaining with even our youngest clients to engage, entertain and ensure continued healthy development despite the ongoing pandemic.
Healthy Family participants have received gift cards to help with purchasing food or other needed items. Books and a Developmental Crate have been mailed to participants to help them keep children on par with their goals and milestones.
Parents are understandly overwhelmed with children home all the time. Staff work hard to create virtual face time opportunities that can engage the entire family. One EHS home visitor shares the story of one family where the little one will take the home visitor tablet and walk around with it "carrying Janet (his home visitor) around with him." Even our youngest clients are now proficient zoom-ers!
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Click
here for more info about WCAC's Early Education & Care programs.
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SOME GOOD NEWS
And now, to steal from Massachusetts' own John Krasinski, who in our opinion has quite simply won the internet with his regular
uplifting quarantine posts
,
we share Some Good News...
- DiLeo Gas, one of WCAC's propane vendors, is providing a grocery gift card to each of WCAC's propane fuel assistance clients - more than 300 households! They have already begun distributing the gift cards to their own customers and will soon be doing the same for all of WCAC's propane clients.Kudos to Brian Soto and his team who wanted to make a contribution to the community and thought that giving grocery cards would benefit both low income home heating clients and local grocery stores!
- Through its Together We Give program, 400 MAPFRE Insurance employees donated in response to the COVID-19 crisis, which the company matched to generate $90,000 in total will be distributed to local food banks in Arizona, California, Connecticut, Florida, Massachusetts, Ohio and Washington. WCAC is most grateful to be among the recipients of more than $9,000 to support our Virtual Food Pantry.
- EverSource Foundation donated $1,000 to WCAC also in support of our Virtual Food Pantry - allowing WCAC to provide gift cards to local grocery stores for clients struggling to keep food on the table during these trying times.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
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MAKE IT COUNT
While our days are occupied wondering how to keep our family safe, how to afford growing food and utility bills with everyone home all the time, when things might ever return to 'normal' ... talking about the 2020 Census might seem silly. The truth is however, the results of the 2020 Census will help determine how hundreds of billions of dollars in federal funding flow into our communities
every year for the next decade. A poor count now can have dramatic and devastating impact on funding for our schools, our roads, our healthcare system and so much more
for the next ten years. Please do your part - be counted! And encourage family, friends, and neighbors to do the same!
Visit
www.My2020Census.gov today to be counted - it's easy, it's quick and it'll make a big difference!
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COMMUNITY RESOURCES:
Beyond the direct services WCAC provides we want to be sure you are connected to whatever community service you might need. Click
HERE for a link to our community resource page which includes information about
Unemployment Assistance;
Food Assistance including links to area mobile-meals programs as well as food pantries, soup kitches and shelters; services for
senior citizens;
emergency childcare programs and more.
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www.WCAC.net Info@WCAC.net
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