OUR IMPACT IN OCTOBER

The work we do makes a difference in the lives of those we serve.

Hey Brandi,

October was a hectic month for Urban Triage and the communities we serve. We're excited about November and the possibilities of providing housing for families and holiday cheer.

This November, Giving Tuesday falls on the 28th. Creating opportunities as a community to support families in escaping homelessness. Giving Tuesday is a national day of giving. Last year, we raised more than $55,000 and were able to provide resources for over 30 unhoused youth and place 9 youth in permanent housing because of YOUR investment!

This year, we aim to triple our impact by raising $150,000 to house 40 families and youth, provide emergency shelter for 20 women fleeing domestic violence, and support 100 families with hot meals and gifts this holiday!

As you may know, vulnerable communities struggle to find and remain housing secure, with rents increasing by $400 and more a month. In addition to our housing crises, there has been an uptick in community violence, including the murder of a 15-year-old teen and the shooting of several others. Families are desperate, and youth are feeling unsafe, unprotected, and hopeless. In support of vulnerable communities, we're asking YOU to donate to Urban Triage this Giving Tuesday to ensure families that too often go unserved are provided with housing, holiday meals, and Christmas cheer. Urban Triage is intentional in providing targeted outreach and engagement to underserved communities. Our work and programs are designed based on the targeted population's needs. To design programming based on their needs, we engage them via community meetings and street outreach.

Brandi,, on Wednesday, November 8, Urban Triage held a town hall meeting at LaFollette High School to discuss the needs of youth and vulnerable families and to create a plan for providing and meeting their needs. Our next steps following the town hall will be to create a report with the data we collected, send the report to community leaders and you, solicit partnerships and support to meet the needs of youth, and schedule our next town hall.

How can you support, you ask? Donate to Urban Triage. All community engagement and housing support we provide are from our unrestricted funds, which is not sustainable. Click the link below or send a check to Urban Triage, 2312 S. Park St, Madison, WI 53713, to support our work. And donate to our Giving Tuesday Campaign, which is matched dollar to dollar by UW Health up to $25,000. In addition, you can donate to Urban Triage at any Starbucks in the Madison area starting next week.

Check out the rest of our newsletter to learn more about how you can support us and what we've been up to, including our Hemp Specialty Crop Workgroup. We're extremely excited about our work and the possibilities of what we can cause and create as a community to meet the needs of those who are most vulnerable among us.

If you have questions, please don't hesitate to contact me at bgrayson@urbantriage.org. And donors, please be on the lookout for your invite to an exclusive brunch with me on December 7th. To view the entire newsletter, please click the button at the bottom of this email--I would hate for you to miss all the dope stuff we're doing.

In solidarity,

#HOUSINGOURFUTURE

Assist us in helping local youth escape homelessness.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

Giving Tuesday is a global day of giving, and this year Urban Triage is counting on your generosity to help us change lives. Join us this holiday season on #GivingTuesday, November 28, 2023, in embracing the concept that the suffering of others should be as intolerable to us as our own suffering. Let's make this giving season a season of radical generosity! 

This year, our theme is #HousingOurFuture. We are aiming to raise $150,000 to house 40 families and youth, provide emergency shelter for 20 women fleeing domestic violence, and support 100 families with hot meals and gifts this holiday season. Join us this Giving Tuesday

HOW YOU CAN HELP

Assist us in reaching our goal by getting involved in the following ways:

1. DONATE - Don't wait until November 28th! Support Urban Triage now in our aim to raise $150,000 to house 40 families and youth, provide emergency shelter for 20 women fleeing domestic violence, and support 100 families with hot meals and gifts this holiday season.

2. BECOME A FUNDRAISING AMBASSADOR - You can make a real impact by fundraising on behalf of Urban Triage. Set ambitious goals and rally your friends, family, co-workers, and network to support Urban Triage this Giving Tuesday. Start an online fundraiser—email info@urbantriage.org for questions and support.

3. VOLUNTEER - Your time is as valuable to our organization as your financial donation. Join us as a volunteer and help make a difference in the lives of those in need.

COMMUNITY YOUTH ENGAGEMENT

We're changing the trajectory of lives--one person at a time

MEETING THEM WHERE THEY'RE AT

Over the last month, Urban Triage staff has been at Lafollete and East High Schools, supporting and engaging youth in addition to supporting the MOMs group--who volunteer their efforts daily to provide snacks and lunch to vulnerable students. Every other Wednesday, we support MOMs--two of our staff members visit East High School to provide the students with information about our available resources and to engage how we can support them—offering space for students to talk and be heard. We aim to support our youth in feeling safe, heard, and supported.

Brandi,, we need you. Our youth need you. We need grief counselors, social workers, and trauma recovery support. If you would like to get involved and support students, please click the button below. We appreciate you and so does our youth.

Urban Triage is known for developing and implementing programs that fill the niche and gaps, and serving those most vulnerable. We've successfully and impactfully served 3,082 individuals over the last year with housing services and placed more than 225 individuals and families in permanent housing. We have more than 4 years of providing support and services to tenants and landlords, which positions us to meet the needs of vulnerable youth effectively and efficiently.

TOWN HALL MEETING

Shout out to everyone who joined Urban Triage town hall. We had over 60 people in attendance.

Our purpose was to create a plan for providing and meeting the needs of vulnerable youth and families.

Outcomes of the townhall:

1. Recreation center design
2. Action plan for innovative approaches to other needs expressed by youth
3. Community Building

Process: We used the World Cafe Method to facilitate the meeting followed by a question and answer.

Our next steps:

1. Create a report with the data we collected
2. Send to community leaders.
3. Solicit partnerships and support to meet the needs of youth
4. Schedule Townhall on Westside

SUSTAIN DANE LIVE FORWARD AWARDS

On Friday, November 3rd, our very own Ruthanna Hutton-Okpalaeke and Cooper Talbot won the Sustain Dane Live Forward Awards at the 15th annual Sustain Dane Summit! This conference is for sustainability leaders to learn, connect, share, reflect, and build new skills.

We are so proud of both of them for winning this amazing award as a result of their hard work and dedication!

WE'RE GROWING HEMP!

Our 1st pilot workgroup for Hemp specialty-centering Black Entrepreneurs began in August, and they are rocking and rolling. Our workgroup offers a comprehensive design that teaches participants how to grow, cultivate, harvest, and process hemp and provides the support and tools to enter the Hemp industry.

Check out their plants below.

Our Supporting Healthy Black Families workgroup has officially ended. Our workgroup is known for its life-changing impact, and our curriculum is like no other. This group has been committed to the work and has witnessed life-changing experiences. Our workgroups are designed to bring about positive, permanent shifts in how participants define and understand white supremacy racism and its impact on how we see ourselves, show up in the world, and navigate systems. Participants' shifts are the direct cause for a new kind of freedom and POWER in their lives—the freedom to acknowledge and accept our painful history and the personal power to do something about it. Thus impacting the confidence with which they live their lives and care for their families. 

We are utilizing the framework of Dr. Joyce DeGruey’s post-traumatic slave syndrome, looking at the seemingly insurmountable obstacles Black people have faced due to the ongoing and persistent trauma associated with existing within the context of white supremacy racism. Changing lives one person and family at a time.

Meet our Rental Support Specialist, Krissy Lucas. She joined our team in March of this year and has shown up and shown out. Since joining Urban Triage, Krissy has demonstrated ownership and drive--creating new systems and processes to support those we serve.

Thank you, Krissy! We love and appreciate you.

THE COLOR PURPLE PREMIER

Brandi, join us and enjoy the movie premiere of The Color Purple with Urban Triage! A popcorn and a drink are included with each movie ticket purchase.

Come celebrate opening night with your family and community brought to you by Urban Triage, your local community nonprofit! Y'all know when we do events, we do it right. Elegant, classy, and intelligent at the same time!

We are Black Excellence in Action. Come 20 minutes early to meet Urban Triage's Squad. Seats are first-come-first-served.

BRUNCH WITH OUR CEO

WE'RE OUTSIDE

See what our team has been up to in these streets.

MADISON365 LEADERSHIP SUMMIT

Our CEO Brandi Grayson was a moderator and sat on the panel at the Madison365 Leadership Summit yesterday! She The Leadership Summit is about joining Wisconsin's most prominent leaders of color to build community, address issues, and develop strategies for Wisconsin's future.

Brandi moderated the Addressing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Backlash: Turning Criticism Into Learning Opportunities panel, which was attended by more than 200 participants. She was accompanied by panelist Deborah Biddle, Dr. Selika Ducksworth-Lawton, Dr. Damira Grady, Lisa Imhoff, and Donnel A. Thompson.

Moderated by Angela Russell, Brandi also was sat on the Black Oxygen panel as a panelist, which centers Black women in leadership. She was accompanied by panelist Vanessa McDowell and Latesha Nelson. It was a thought-provoking and transformative session that left people feeling inspired to take action in their own lives as it relates to dealing with their grief and tribulations into action to empower their leadership.

It was an amazing day spent with some amazing and influential people with Madison365 being the most diverse leadership summit in Dane County history!

NATIONAL HOMELESSNESS AWARENESS MONTH

November is National Homelessness Awareness and National Runaway Prevention Month. On November 1st our team wore purple with others nationwide to support National Homelessness Awareness Month. They also wore green on the 3rd to support National Runaway Prevention Month! 

Our Unhoused Neighbors Outreach Team also went to the capitol to support National Homelessness Awareness Month where they listened to speakers and viewed art from people in the community who have experienced homelessness or support those experiencing homelessness or housing insecurities.

Wednesday, November 22nd | K.I.L.O aka Skit'Lz & Friends

Are you ready to create change in our community? Apply to become one of our community advocates and make a difference today!

We are currently looking for immediate volunteers for the following:

• Agriculture
• Bilingual Support
• Organizing Office Space, Closets, and Storage
• Event Committees
• Events: Black Brilliance Gala
• Grant Writing

If you are interested in volunteering for the above needs or any other future needs of Urban Triage, please sign up to volunteer below!